The prolific Takashi Miike is finally coming to Hollywood. Deadline reports that the Japanese director has a new project ready to shoot this month via NEON: “Bad Lieutenant: Tokyo,” and it features Shun Oguri, Lily James, and WWE star Liv Morgan on the cast sheet.
READ MORE: Charli xcx To Star In Mysterious New Film From Prolific Japanese Director Takashi Miike
Here’s a brief synopsis for the crime pic, courtesy of Deadline: “”Bad Lieutenant: Tokyo” will follow the Bad Lieutenant (Oguri), a corrupt gambler in the Metropolitan Police Force, who finds himself thrown into a tangled case after an enigmatic FBI agent (James) arrives in Tokyo to investigate the disappearance of a politician’s daughter (Morgan). Meanwhile, a deviant killer operating in the yakuza underworld seems to be shadowing their moves.” “Audition” and “13 Assassins” scribe Daisuke Engan pens the script for Miike, based on IP first created by Edward R. Pressman.
“Bad Lieutenant: Tokyo” is US-Japan co-production, with several involved backstage. Jeremy Thomas leads producers via Recorded Picture Company, with Sam Pressman via Pressman Film, Naoaki Kitajimi via Nippon TV, and Misake Saka for OLM. Executive producers include Tom Quinn, Yuzo Kuwahara, Tetsu Fujimura, Paula Paizes, Alainée Kent, Peter Watson, Ivan Kelava, Max Loeb, and Mike Agpar. NEON handles the film’s theatrical rights in North America, but they’ll be at the Cannes market later this month to sell its international ones.
“Director Miike brings a fearless new vision to the Bad Lieutenant, a character defined by the auteur,” Pressman said in a press statement for the upcoming film. Just as maestros [Abel] Ferrara and [Werner] Herzog delivered films as radically different as their own voices, Miike’s adaptation is unrelentingly wild and unique. My father Edward R. Pressman, always believed this story of corruption, both of police and the human soul, has a global resonance. To realize this next evolution now in Tokyo with Director Miike, NEON and my father’s lifelong friend Jeremy Thomas — all true believers in the power of independent cinema — is both an honor and a dream come true.”
Miike’s new film is yet another hot title for NEON in the next couple of years, which means the company only wants to capitalize on the awards season success of “Anora.” Other upcoming NEON titles include “The Life Of Chuck,” in theaters next month, and Osgood Perkins‘ next horror flick “Keeper,” which arrives in October. Meanwhile, NEON has four titles headed to Cannes 2025: Julia Ducournau‘s “Alpha,” Joachim Trier‘s “Sentimental Value,” Raoul Peck‘s “Orwell,” and Michael Angelo Covino‘s “Splitsville.”
Known stateside for films like “Audition,” “Ichi The Killer,” and his “Dead Or Alive” trilogy, Miike also has another upcoming project on the way starring Charli xcx. His last few films include “Sham,” “Blazing Fists,” and “Lumberjack The Monster.”
Japan favorite Oguri is no stranger to working with Miike. Their previous work together includes “Crows Zero,” its sequel “Terra Formars,” and “Sukiyaki Western Django.” American audiences will know the actor best from Adam Wingard‘s “Godzilla vs. Kong.”
James recently starred in the Hulu series “Pam & Tommy” and has “Cliffhanger” on the way.
Meanwhile, Liv Morgan is one of the WWE’s biggest women wrestlers at the moment. She recently featured in WrestleMania 41 last month. Her first film role came in 2023 in “The Kill Room.”
Stay tuned for more news on “Bad Lieutenant: Tokyo” as it starts shooting in Japan. Expect NEON to have it in theaters sometime in 2026, with a Cannes world premiere likely, given how much the festival loves Miike.
