The animated action/adventure epic AFRO SAMURAI, starring Samuel L. Jackson, premieres on SPIKE, Thursday, Jan. 4, 2007, at 11:00 pm and repeats at 12:30 am. The five-part series is produced by Japanese studio Gonzo in association/partnership with GHK K.K. and FUNimation Ent.
AFRO SAMURAI is the tale of a black samurai set in a futuristic, yet feudal Japan who is on a mission to avenge the wrongful death of his father. Jackson voices title role of "Afro," a mysterious warrior who travels a solitary path encountering a myriad of enemies, friends and challenges beyond imagination. Jackson also provides the voice of Ninja Ninja, the comedic sidekick, and serves as exec producer.
The cast includes Ron Perlman as "Justice," a lightning quick gunfighter, responsible for the death of Afro's father and Kelly Hu as "Okiku," a seductively beautiful girl who is an expert in the healing arts. Hip-hop artist and producer The RZA provides the original soundtrack for AFRO SAMURAI.
"AFRO SAMURAI takes a classic samurai story of tradition, honor and revenge and updates it with a revolutionary animation style and mixes it with a touch of hip-hop flavor," said Leo Chu, exec in charge of production at SPIKE. "Samuel L. Jackson who is a fan of martial arts and samurai films is ideal for the starring role of our uncompromising hero."
AFRO SAMURAI is a creative collaboration between Samuel L. Jackson, Takashi Okazaki and Japanese animation company Gonzo, a division of GDH, who is also acting as series producer. Graphic designer, illustrator and artist Takashi "Bob" Okazaki created the concept of AFRO SAMURAI.
FUNimation Ent. (www.funimation.com), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Navarre Corp., is a brand management company and one of the leading independent home video entertainment companies in the U.S. The company's most recent initiative is the FUNimation ChannelSM, a new, 24-hour digital network featuring programming from the top anime brands in the United States. FUNimation has a proven formula for launching and advancing brands, and manages a full spectrum of rights for most of its brands including broadcasting, licensing, production and Internet, as well home video sales and distribution.
GDH (www.gdh.co.jp) is a globally-focused Japanese media company founded in Feb. 2000. The group produces cutting edge entertainment for teens and young adults, including the famous GONZO animation brand and for kids and family under the recently launched Gonzo Films and Gonzino brands. GDH is a world leader in content development that targets both domestic and international audiences with Japan's trendsetting animation culture and, usually, GDH controls licensing management and international distribution for the content it produces. GDH group companies include GONZO K.K., G-creators K.K., Future Vision Music K.K., GONZINO K.K., GONZO Rosso Online K.K., GDH Capital K.K., and GK Ent. K.K.
SPIKE (www.spiket.com) is available in more than 90 million homes and is a division of MTV Networks. A unit of Viacom, MTV Networks is one of the world's leading creators of programming and content across all media platforms.
