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Guidelines for Announcing News Related to New Film The original novels are a smash hit boasting 19 million copies in cumulative worldwide sales! SWORD ART ONLINE THE MOVIE: ORDINAL SCALE BASED ON SWORD ART ONLINE WHAT THE FANS HAVE BEEN WAITING FOR – NOW SET TO LAUNCH AS A LIVE-ACTION SERIES IN HOLLYWOOD, U.S.A.! Sword Art Online The Movie: Ordinal Scale, based on the smash hit light novel series published by KADOKAWA’s Dengeki Bunko boasting worldwide sales of 19 million copies, is set for its global premiere in spring 2017. In partnership with the KADOKAWA CORPORATION, Skydance Media, a U.S.-based diversified media company, has acquired the worldwide live-action rights for Sword Art Online. Having already spawned a comic book series, two TV anime adaptations, and video games, and with its first theatrical film, Sword Art Online The Movie: Ordinal Scale, set for worldwide release in spring 2017, this marks Sword Art Online’s first foray into live-action television. It will be developed as a TV series based on the storyline of the original series. With screenwriter Laeta Kalogridis (Avatar, Shutter Island, Terminator Genisys) on board to pen the pilot episode, all bases seem to be covered for the live-action launch. In addition to the TV series, Skydance Media is planning a Sword Art Online virtual reality experience through Skydance Interactive. Original author Reki Kawahara, live-action screenwriter Laeta Kalogridis, and Skydance Media CEO David Ellison have all commented on the launch of the live action adaptation. Please look forward to the launch of the live-action Sword Art Online series, following the movie, Sword Art Online The Movie: Ordinal Scale, set for its global premiere in spring 2017. Reki Kawahara’s comments: I am excited and moved that ‘Sword Art Online’ will be adapted into a live action series by the highly respected Skydance Media. I would like to take this opportunity to express my appreciation and gratitude to everyone involved in this project, and to the fans all over the world who have so generously and enthusiastically supported SAO. Laeta Kalogridis’s comments: For years I have been inspired by the inventive and masterful storytelling of the SAO franchise. I’m thrilled to get the opportunity to work with such talented partners to bring this cutting-edge yet timeless story to a new format at Skydance.. David Ellison’s comments: At Skydance we are in the business of world-building and SAO is a massive pop-culture phenomenon from which we plan to launch a full-scale and wide-ranging set of live action franchise extensions across our business verticals, beginning with television. We look forward to working alongside Laeta, Reki Kawahara, and the teams at KADOKAWA and Aniplex to build out a deeply immersive new universe of SAO in an authentic way that honors its well-established fan base around the globe. About Skydance Media Skydance Media is a diversified media company founded by David Ellison in 2010 to produce entertainment that will take the world by storm. Through deft use of various platforms including feature film, television, and interactive media, Skydance excels at injecting stories with a sense of reality. Skydance has been involved with the following: Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation, Terminator Genisys, World War Z, Jack Reacher, G.I. Joe: Retaliation, Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol, Star Trek Into Darkness, and True Grit. Its 2015 releases, Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation, and Terminator Genisys, together grossed over $1 billion worldwide. Skydance acquired leading game developer The Workshop Entertainment in 2016, and established a new virtual reality experience division, Skydance Interactive. About Sword Art Online The Movie: Ordinal Scale A film based on an all-new, original story by original author Reki Kawahara! 2022 – The NerveGear, the world’s first dedicated full-dive device developed by the genius programmer, Akihiko Kayaba. It was a revolutionary machine that opened up infinite possibilities for the world of VR (Virtual Reality.) 4 years later…. A next-generation, wearable multi-device called the Augma has been released to compete with the NerveGear’s successor – the Amusphere. A cutting-edge machine boasting the ability to enhance AR (Augmented Reality) to the maximum, the Augma offers a safe, user-friendly experience, as it can be used while the player is awake, making it an instant hit. Its killer title is an ARMMORPG developed exclusively for the Augma, “Ordinal Scale (a.k.a. OS).” Kirito is about to join Asuna and the others as an Ordinal Scale player, but… [STAFF] Original Story: Reki Kawahara (Dengeki Bunko / ASCII MEDIA WORKS) Director: Tomohiko Ito Character Design Concept: abec Character Design&Chief Animation Director: Shingo Adachi Music: Yuki Kajiura Animation Production: A-1 Pictures Distributed by Aniplex Inc. Produced by SAO MOVIE Project [CAST] Kirito (Kazuto Kirigaya): Yoshitsugu Matsuoka Asuna (Asuna Yuuki): Haruka Tomatsu Yui: Kanae Ito Sinon (Shino Asada): Miyuki Sawashiro Lisbeth (Rika Shinozaki): Ayahi Takagaki Silica (Keiko Ayano): Rina Hidaka Klein (Ryotaro Tsuboi): Hiroaki Hirata Leafa (Suguha Kirigaya): Ayana Taketatsu Agil (Andrew Gilbert Mills): Hiroki Yasumoto Akihiko Kayaba: Koichi Yamadera [Nationwide bonus giveaway (Part 1) with advance ticket purchase] On sale starting on July 16 (Saturday)! / Price: 1,500 yen (tax included) / Bonus: 2nd key visual B2-size poster ☆Walk-up ticket price: 1,800 yen (general admission) ☆Giveaways are limited in quantity. Only while supplies last. ☆Bonus giveaway (Part 2) will also go on sale nationwide. SAO Concert by Yuki Kajiura in Hollywood! “Yuki Kajiura LIVE ~ featuring SWORD ART ONLINE ~”, originally held on March 21, 2016 at the Tokyo International Forum, will be presented at one of Hollywood’s leading venues, The Dolby Theater at Hollywood & Highland on January 14, 2017! Ms. Kajiura will be making her North American debut as a solo artist. This will be a once-in-a-lifetime chance for SAO fans in North America to experience Ms. Kajiura’s worldview in person, so please look forward to it. Event name: Yuki Kajiura Live in Hollywood Featuring Sword Art Online Date: January 14, 2017 Venue: Dolby Theater at Hollywood & Highland Now on sale to great acclaim! For more information, please follow the link below. http://www.sao-movie.net/us/yukikajiura About the anime series Sword Art Online Based on author Reki Kawahara’s light novel (winner of the 15th Dengeki Novel Award Grand Prize). It tells the tale of protagonist, Kirito’s heroics inside the mysterious next-gen VRMMORPG called Sword Art Online. Since the first volume of the novel was published in April 2009, the series has been extremely popular, with cumulative sales exceeding 12.5 million units in Japan (19 million worldwide). The series has been adapted into two animated series, in addition to several games, comics and merchandise, boasting a wide-ranging mixed-media lineup. In Spring 2017, a brand new original story written by Reki Kawahara, is set for a theatrical release. SAO fans around the world are anxiously anticipating its release. Please attach the following credits when publishing this press release. Title: Sword Art Online The Movie – Ordinal Scale – Coming to Theaters: Spring, 2017 Nationwide First-run Release Distributed by Aniplex Inc. Copyright: ©2016 Reki Kawahara/KADOKAWA ASCII Media Works/SAO MOVIE Project ELECTRO89 2F Friends House 3-12-4 Kami-Meguro Meguro-ku, Tokyo 1530051 JAPAN