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First 'Yasuke' Trailer
First 'Yasuke' Trailer
Photo Credit: Screengrab via YouTube/Netflix

LaKeith Stanfield Voices "Legendary Black Samurai" In First 'Yasuke' Trailer

Yasuke premieres on Netflix April 29.

The first trailer for the upcoming Yasuke anime series has been released, and it looks great. The minute-and-a-half video gives viewers its first taste of LaKeith Stanfield as the titular character, where we not only hear him voice Yasuke but get to see the samurai in action, too.

Yasuke drops on Netflix Aprill 29. According to a press release for the show, it's a six-episode anime “set in alternate fantastical Japan during the feudal era,” and “follows a samurai warrior of African descent who must return to his life of sword-fighting and violence in order to protect a mysterious girl from dark forces.”

The series is based off the real-life figure of the same name, who was reputedly the first black samurai to serve a warlord in Japan.

"Yasuke is a fascinating, mysterious figure in Japanese history that’s drawn a growing interest in today’s media over the decades," LeSean Thomas, the creator, executive producer, and director of the series, said in a previous press release. “I first learned of Yasuke’s role in Japanese history over a decade or so. The children’s book, Kuro-suke by Kurusu Yoshio, featured images that piqued my curiosity. To eventually learn that he wasn’t just a fictional character, but a real person, was exciting material for an adventure story.”

Flying Lotus serves as an executive producer alongside Thomas, as well as the show’s music producer.