'The First Slam Dunk" Drops First Official Trailer

Arriving less than a month before the movie’s release, The First Slam Dunk has released its first long-awaited trailer, previewing more of the film’s CG animation styles while keeping the plot details tightly under wraps. The original anime series was never finished, and many believe that the upcoming movie could be a move to gauge public interest for a follow-up season, developing the stories laid out in the manga.

Featured in the trailer is a scene of children practicing basketball followed by a scene of Haruko Akagi sitting pensively at the beach and the Shohoku High School basketball team huddling ahead of tip-off. The main cast of the film has also been announced featuring Shugo Nakamura as Ryota Miyagi, Jun Kasama as Hisashi Mitsui, Shin’ichiro Kamio as Kaede Rukawa, Subaru Kimura as Hanamichi Sakuragi, and Kenta Miyake as Takenori Akagi.

The First Slam Dunk is written and directed by the original Slam Dunk manga artist Takehiko Inoue who works with Toei Animation and CG company Dandelion Animation Studio to produce the film. For those that have yet to watch the series, below is a full synopsis of the show.

The series tells the story of Hanamichi Sakuragi, a teenager who falls in love with Haruko Akagi after being rejected by 50 other girls. However, as Haruko is in love with Kaede Rukawa, a popular and talented basketball player, Sakuragi decides to join the Shohoku High School basketball team to surpass Rukawa and make Haruko fall in love with him. As he starts learning how to play basketball with Shohoku, Sakuragi starts liking the sport and becomes determined to be the best player. On the team, Sakuragi meets Haruko’s older brother, Takenori Akagi, who is also Shohoku’s captain, and two other player with a violent past which caused them to leave the sport some time ago, Ryota Miyagi, and Hisashi Mitsui. Together these five players help make Shohoku one of the best high school teams in Japan.

The First Slam Dunk is set to premiere in theaters in Japan on December 3.

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