{"id":18614,"date":"2026-08-01T00:05:53","date_gmt":"2026-08-01T00:05:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/topat10.com\/?p=18614"},"modified":"2026-08-01T00:05:53","modified_gmt":"2026-08-01T00:05:53","slug":"heres-how-the-late-japanese-actor-toshiro-mifune-became-the-face-of-musashi-in-onimusha-way-of-the-sword","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/topat10.com\/?p=18614","title":{"rendered":"Here\u2019s How The Late Japanese Actor Toshir\u014d Mifune Became The Face Of Musashi In Onimusha: Way Of The Sword"},"content":{"rendered":"


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It\u2019s becoming increasingly common to see deceased actors, musicians, and the like recreated digitally for hologram concerts, movies, video games, and more. There is a wide range of ways studios and creators approach doing so. Using generative AI (for image and voice) is absolutely the worst way to go about it, as it\u2019s a disgrace to both the deceased and the living; there are also digital recreations made by artists, which is less disgraceful, I guess, but still murky waters \u2013 look no further than\u00a0Ryu Ga Gotaku Studio\u2019s use of deceased West Coast hip hop artist Tupac in Stranger Than Heaven<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n

I\u2019m always surprised when any creator or studio decides to resurrect the dead for a project.\u00a0Onimusha: Way of the Sword<\/a>, Capcom\u2019s upcoming return to the samurai action series after a\u00a020-year hiatus<\/a> and\u00a0the latest game to grace the cover of\u00a0Game Informer<\/em><\/a>, is using the likeness of late actor Toshir\u014d Mifune for its protagonist Miyamoto Musashi.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\"Toshir\u014d<\/p>\n

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Toshir\u014d Mifune<\/p>\n<\/article>\n

Fortunately, Capcom isn\u2019t using generative AI to do so, nor is it attempting to create a Musashi that moves, acts, and talks like Mifune \u2013 it\u2019s strictly using Mifune\u2019s visual likeness for the character, and according to Way of the Sword director Satoru Nihei, that was the plan from the jump.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201c[Using Mifune\u2019s likeness] was something we felt very strongly about from the beginning,\u201d Nihei tells me. \u201cWanting to have this very iconic samurai image, the first name that came to mind was Mifune. Once we decided on that, I approached the producer to ask if we could do this [and it went from there].\u201d<\/p>\n

As for why Mifune was the first name that came to Nihei\u2019s mind, it\u2019s because Mifune famously portrayed the historic Musashi in various films.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Born in 1920, Mifune performed various iconic roles throughout his life before his death in 1997. He\u2019s likely most famous to many for his leading parts in Akira Kurosawa films, including some that put him in the armor of a samurai, but Mifune also portrayed Musashi in director Hiroshi Inagaki\u2019s 1950\u2019s Samurai Trilogy, which consists of\u00a0Samurai I: Musashi Miyamoto<\/em>\u00a0(1954),\u00a0Samurai II: Duel at Ichijoji Temple<\/em>\u00a0(1955), and\u00a0Samurai III: Duel at Ganryu Island<\/em>\u00a0(1956).\u00a0<\/p>\n

Pundits argue that Inagaki\u2019s trilogy and Mifune\u2019s portrayal of the iconic samurai, alongside other seminal Japanese works like Eiji Yoshikawa\u2019s newspaper serial-turned-novel-epic\u00a0Musashi, solidified Miyamoto Musashi as\u00a0the\u00a0most legendary swordsman in Japanese history. That\u2019s why Mifune\u2019s likeness for Way of the Sword\u2019s Musashi was part of the original pitch for the game.\u00a0<\/p>\n

During our discussion, Nihei correctly points out that Onimusha has always used celebrity likenesses: Onimusha: Warlords’ protagonist, Samanosuke Akechi, is played by Japanese actor Takeshi Kaneshiro, for example, while late actor Y\u016bsaku Matsuda was the model for Onimusha 2: Samurai\u2019s Destiny’s protagonist, Jubei Yagyu. Even Onimusha 3: Demon Siege did this, featuring French actor Jean Reno as Jacques Blanc in the time-traveling threequel. In that sense, Mifune\u2019s likeness being used for Way of the Sword\u2019s Musashi falls in line with the series. But, as someone generally in favor of allowing the dead to stay dead, I still press Capcom on how such a resurrection works.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Producer Akihito Kadowaki tells me it all began with Mifune\u2019s family. Capcom first requested permission to use Mifune\u2019s likeness. Then, the artists got to work digitally recreating the late actor in the RE Engine, ensuring that drafts and associated materials were passed along to the family throughout the process for approval (and tips, pointers, and suggestions, too). Kadowaki says the family was impressed with Capcom\u2019s recreation, though he\u2019s quick to note that Way of the Sword\u2019s Musashi is unique to Onimusha, despite the visual likeness.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n\"Here\u2019s<\/p>\n

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Criterion<\/p>\n

Toshir\u014d Mifune as Miyamoto Musashi in the Samurai Trilogy<\/p>\n<\/article>\n

\u201c[We were not] necessarily looking to recreate and feature Toshir\u014d Mifune as the face of the series; it\u2019s more of a case that we wanted to create our own particular unique Miyamoto Musashi […] and we felt that Mifune-san was a really good match, just because a lot of his characteristics, his performance, and his expressions were a good match for elevating that vision we had for Musashi,\u201d Kadowaki explains. The team tells me this Musashi, in his 20s, hasn\u2019t yet discovered his dual-wielding technique, which is why his only weapon will be his one katana (and the Oni Armaments, but those are separately equipped from the sword). It\u2019s also why he\u2019s more brash, arrogant in his abilities, and selfish in his values and ways \u2013 he hasn\u2019t yet learned all that the Musashi learned across his 40-plus years of samurai life.<\/p>\n

Animation team lead Hiroshi Yugen says he and the rest of the team behind Way of the Sword\u2019s combat took some inspiration from Mifune\u2019s movies and other entries in the samurai-action genre, taking special care to capture the human element of this feudal combat. Yamashita adds that seeing Mifune come to life as Musashi\u2019s likeness was one of his favorite things about Way of the Sword, especially as a fan of Mifune\u2019s breadth of work. \u201cI\u2019m quite proud of what we\u2019ve managed to achieve,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

Art director Hiroyuki Nara says using Mifune\u2019s likeness for Musashi made the artistic process easier for his team. It\u2019s much easier to have that base to follow than a blank canvas, he explains, before noting that it wasn\u2019t a concern having to check in with Mifune\u2019s estate, but rather an exciting and helpful part of the process.<\/p>\n

Though I\u2019m ultimately team let-the-dead-stay-dead, after talking with Capcom, I ultimately feel far more comfortable playing Onimusha: Way of the Sword with its Mifune-likeness recreated onto Musashi than, say, Stranger Than Heaven, with its posthumous use of Tupac. If there is such a way to do this respectfully, it seems like Capcom has attempted to pursue that path.\u00a0<\/p>\n

I\u2019ll be diving deeper into Capcom\u2019s return to Onimusha as part of\u00a0Game Informer\u2019s<\/em> month of Way of the Sword coverage. We\u2019ll be publishing exclusive gameplay and behind-the-scenes videos (including a Rapid-Fire Interview) on the\u00a0Game Informer<\/em> YouTube channel<\/a> as well. Keep an eye on the\u00a0Onimusha: Way of the Sword coverage hub<\/a> so you don\u2019t miss any of it.\u00a0<\/p>\n