Jack Black is currently on a promotional run for his upcoming movie, The Super Mario Galaxy Movie, which will hit theaters on April 1, 2026. He will be playing the role of Bowser, the main villain in the animated sequel. Black is known to have a spate of video game adaptations to his credit. Aligning with that trend, he has expressed his desire to be a part of a live-action adaptation of the beloved Japanese video game series Yakuza.
Jack Black flirts with Sega for a part in the long-running gaming franchise Yakuza
In an interview with ScreenRant, Black implied that he wants to expand on his resume of video game adaptations. The actor openly pitched himself for a role in a potential live-action adaptation of Yakuza, joking that if there are any parts available for a “portly American,” Sega, the franchise’s publisher, should give him a call.
“I’m going to throw my hat in that ring. I don’t know if there [are] any parts for me, like a portly American, but talk to me. Sega, give me a jingle,” the School of Rock actor said.
Notably, Black has a strong track record when it comes to video game adaptations. He is part of the animated Mario franchise, and the first film, The Super Mario Bros. Movie, grossed $1.361 billion at the worldwide box office. He also starred in A Minecraft Movie, based on the popular sandbox video game Minecraft, which was another massive box office success.
The Yakuza franchise is set in Japan’s criminal underworld, centered around a former Japanese gangster, Kazuma Kiryu. The video game series is quite popular for blending action and offbeat humor. Fortunately for Jack Black, the series has occasionally featured international figures, which leaves room for Black in a supporting role.
Interestingly, Amazon Prime Video released a TV adaptation of Yakuza in 2024, but Like a Dragon: Yakuza did not receive many positive reviews. Before the Amazon series, there was also a film adaptation that loosely followed the plot of the first game called Like a Dragon in 2007.
The long-running video game franchise first launched in 2005 on the PlayStation 2. Would you like to see Jack Black in Yakuza? Let us know in the comments section below.
