Capcom’s upcoming live-action Street Fighter movie has a new director. And like the previous choice to helm the adaptation — Talk to Me directors Michael and Danny Philippou, who just dropped the first trailer for their next movie today — it’s an unexpected and potentially very fun hire: Kitao Sakurai, best known for directing The Eric André Show and Netflix’s hidden-camera comedy Bad Trip.
The Hollywood Reporter reported Wednesday that Sakurai has stepped into the director’s chair for 2026’s Street Fighter movie, which is being developed and produced by Capcom and Legendary. Sony is distributing the film, which has a March 20, 2026 release date.
Sakurai already has some experience with live-action video game adaptations. He directed multiple episodes of Peacock’s Twisted Metal series.
Capcom and Legendary seem to be taking a very different approach to the next Street Fighter movie, compared to previous efforts. 1994’s Street Fighter, starring Jean-Claude Van Damme and Raul Julia, was helmed by Steven E. de Souza, who was known largely for writing action movies like Die Hard and Commando. 2009’s Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li was directed by Andrzej Bartkowiak, maker of action fare like Romeo Must Die and the Doom movie.
We don’t know much about the new Street Fighter live-action adaptation beyond its release date and Sakurai’s involvement, but it sure seems like Capcom and Legendary are planning on swerving a bit with the flagship fighting game franchise. Legendary has a track record of bringing huge AAA gaming properties to the big screen, with Warcraft, Detective Pikachu, and A Minecraft Movie. Hopefully, the production company can turn Capcom’s cinematic fortunes around after recent duds like Monster Hunter and Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City.
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