Keanu Reeves to Lead Voice Cast of ‘Hidari,’ Japanese Stop-Motion Samurai Epic From Director Masashi Kawamura
Keanu Reeves is set to lend his voice to the title role of Hidari, a Japanese stop-motion action feature in development from director Masashi Kawamura, the project’s producers announced Sunday in Cannes.
The feature is an expansion of Kawamura’s viral 2023 proof-of-concept short of the same name, which has racked up close to 5 million views on YouTube since its release. Loosely inspired by the legend of Jingoro Hidari, a near-mythic master carpenter from Japan’s Edo period, the film follows the artisan as he loses his father figure, his fiancée and his right arm to a betrayal tied to the secret reconstruction of Edo Castle — then channels his grief into vengeance, wielding a series of mechanical prosthetic arms of his own design alongside his loyal animated wooden companion, the Sleeping Cat. Kawamura has also written the screenplay.
“I’m thrilled by the vision behind Hidari,” Reeves said in a statement. “From the proof of concept to the developed script, the team has created something truly extraordinary. It has all the makings of an exceptional film — one I’m excited to see and eager to be part of. I believe this project has the potential to bring something very special to audiences worldwide.”
Reeves has previously voiced Duke Caboom in Pixar’s Toy Story 4 (2019) and Shadow the Hedgehog in Sonic the Hedgehog 3 (2024), and narrated and produced under his own BRZRKR comic-book and Netflix banner.
Kawamura is a Tokyo-based director and creative best known internationally for genre-fluid, design-driven work spanning commercials, music videos, television and large-scale public installations. He earned a Cristal at the Annecy International Animation Film Festival, an International Emmy nomination, and top honors at the One Show and Clio Awards; he also designed the largest pavilion at last year’s Osaka World Expo and created the dancing clones for some of Lady Gaga’s stage work.
Hidari is produced by Noriko Matsumoto, head of Japanese animation house Dwarf Studios, which partnered with Netflix on the Rilakkuma series — and whose recent short Bottle George was shortlisted for the 2025 Academy Awards. The feature is a co-production between Dwarf Studios, Tokyo creative agency Whatever and animation house TECARAT. Financing comes from Questry Co.’s Tomonobu Ibe, a veteran of Japanese entertainment-content finance.
“I’m super excited to be collaborating with Keanu,” Kawamura said in a statement. “When someone with his experience and creative vision watches your proof of concept and says, ‘I want to be part of this,’ it’s an incredible feeling. He’s not just lending his voice to Hidari — he’s helping us shape and expand this world, and I can’t wait to see where we take it together.”
A release date has not yet been set. Reeves is represented by WME.
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