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Live-Action March comes in like a lion Films' Additional Cast, March & April Openings Revealed

The official website for the two live-action films of Chika Umino's March comes in like a lion (Sangatsu no Lion) manga revealed eight more cast members on Monday. The site also revealed that the two films will open in Japan on March 18 and April 22, respectively.

The new cast is as follows (from left to right):

• Issei Takahashi as Takashi Hayashida, a teacher in Rei's school
• Ryō Iwamatsu as Takanori Jingūji, chairman of the Japan Shōgi Association
• Shigeru Saiki as Sakutarō Yanagihara, the oldest active A-rank shōgi player at 60 years old
• Tomoya Nakamura as Tatsuyuki "Sumisu" Misumi, one of Rei's seniors in shōgi
• Hiroyuki Onoue as Issa Matsumoto, one of Rei's seniors in shōgi
• Eita Okuno as Junkei Yamazaki, Rei's opponent in the beginner's match
• Masahiro Kōmoto as Manabu Yasui, a shōgi player who disturbs Rei's heart
• Yuka Itaya as Misaki, the aunt of the Kawamoto sisters, who watches over them

Other cast members (including lead actor Ryunosuke Kamiki) include:

• Ryunosuke Kamiki as Rei Kiriyama
• Kuranosuke Sasaki as Kai Shimada, a hard-working shōgi player from Yamagata prefecture
• Hideaki Ito as Masamune Gotō, a shōgi player with an intimidating face
• Ryo Kase as Tōji Sōya, the youngest shōgi Meijin-level player at 21 years old
• Kasumi Arimura as Kyōko Koda, Masachika's daughter who acts like a sister to Rei
• Etsushi Toyokawa as Masachika Kōda, Rei's foster father
• Kana Kurashina as Akari Kawamoto, the oldest of the Kawamoto sisters
• Kaya Kiyohara as Hinata Kawamoto, the middle child of the Kawamoto sisters
• Chise Niitsu as Momo Kawamoto, the youngest of the Kawamoto sisters
• Gin Maeda as Someji Kawamoto, the grandfather of the Kawamoto family

Kamiki (shown above) and director Keishi Ōtomo previously worked together on the live-action Rurouni Kenshin films. Ōtomo directed the films, and Kamiki played the character Sōjirō Seta.

The story of the March comes in like a lion manga follows a solitary shōgi player named Rei and his relationships with a neighboring family. He becomes acquainted with Akari, and two young girls, Hinata and Momo, who also have a large number of cats.

Umino started the series in Young Animal in 2007, and Hakusensha released the 11th compiled volume last September. Hakusensha will ship the 12th volume on September 29. The series has won several awards including the Manga Taisho award and Kodansha Manga award in 2011. The manga also won the 18th Tezuka Osamu Prizes' Top Award in March 2014.

A television anime adaptation of the manga has also been green-lit, with Puella Magi Madoka Magica and Bakemonogatari director Akiyuki Simbo directing the anime at SHAFT. The anime will premiere on NHK on October 8.

Source: Comic Natalie