* Image is for illustrative purposes only.Kobikicho no Adauchi (Samurai Vengeance)
木挽町のあだ討ち
A period mystery film adapted from Nagai Sayako's novel, winner of both the Naoki Prize and the Yamamoto Shugoro Prize. Written and directed by Gen Takashi and starring Emoto Tasuku, it was released by Toei on February 27, 2026. Witness testimonies gradually reveal the truth behind a celebrated vendetta in Edo's theatre district of Kobikicho.
Description
Overview
Kobikicho no Adauchi (released internationally as Samurai Vengeance) is a live-action film based on the novel by Nagai Sayako. Written and directed by Gen Takashi and starring Emoto Tasuku, it opened nationwide in Japan on February 27, 2026, distributed by Toei.
Source Novel
The novel was serialized in Shosetsu Shincho from October 2019 to July 2021 and published by Shinchosha in January 2023. That year it won both the 36th Yamamoto Shugoro Prize and the 169th Naoki Prize.
Story
On a snowy night in Kobikicho, Edo's theatre district, the young Ina Kikunosuke kills Sakubei, the servant who murdered his father. The vendetta becomes the talk of the town. Two years later, a samurai claiming a connection to Kikunosuke's family arrives and seeks out the witnesses to hear their accounts, and as the testimonies accumulate, the hidden truth of the vendetta emerges.
Cast
Emoto Tasuku plays Kase Soichiro, the provincial samurai investigating the case; Nagao Kento plays Ina Kikunosuke; Watanabe Ken plays Shinoda Kinji; and Kitamura Kazuki plays Sakubei.
Swords and the Vendetta
At the heart of the story is adauchi (katakiuchi), the Edo-period practice by which a samurai's child avenged a slain parent. A single night's swordplay is retold from multiple townspeople's perspectives, showing how samurai honour and settlement by the sword appeared through the eyes of commoner society.
Real Swords Featured
The Vendetta Sword
The sword with which Ina Kikunosuke avenges his father on Sakubei. A fictional blade within the story, not tied to any specific historical sword.
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