Kyoryu Sentai Zyuranger’s Yuuta Mochizuki Attends Power Rangers Film Screening

Last week, Kyoryu Sentai Zyuranger‘s Yuuta Mochizuki, known for portraying Geki/TyrannoRanger, attended a screening of the Power Rangers movie at Toei Studios.

Mochizuki was contacted on April 27th to attend the screening at Toei Film Studio’s Digital Center in Ooizumigakuen. He said “I was contacted by Toei’s movie’s PR department a few weeks ago and while I have nothing directly to do with the movie, I was requested to come, I would never have predicted it, so I was so glad and thankful – ‘Eh?! You want me?!’ I was surprised and honestly moved.”

After attending the screening, he spoke about the impact of Zyuranger, meeting his American counterparts, and going to Power Morphicon:

25 years ago, Kyoryu Sentai Zyuranger aired and the following year, in America, Power Rangers began, based on the Japanese Sentai series and created the big boom, which still continues until today. At the screening, I was told that the viewing figures for children aged 4-11 years old were 90% strong, it was the first time I heard that!!

Truth is until I went to Power Morphicon in 2014, I hadn’t actually watched the show properly because I thought “This show has nothing to do with me, right?”. But, that was my misunderstanding, going to Power Morphicon and checking my Facebook made me realize that.

When I met our counterparts, between the Japanese Sentai sempai and comrades, even when first meeting them, we had feelings of affinity and solidarity together, but when I met the American cast, I could tell that they held exactly the same things for each other.

All different fans exist over the world. They have a level of familiarity of Japanese tokusatsu heroes and I discovered the effect fully.

Mochizuki went to on to describe his interactions with Toei executive producer, Takeyuki Suzuki:

Before watching the movie, Takeyuki Suzuki, executive producer at Toei, who was a producer at the time of Zyuranger was there and said: “Mochizuki, it’s been half a century since Zyuranger, and Japanese Sentai has got this far”. A few years ago, when I was working on the Kyoryuger Vs. Go-Busters movie, Suzuki came to the set in Yokohama. Where the location bus stopped, he was there. He was a little far away, but I could work out who he was. “Mr. Suzuki!” I hopped off the bus and rushed over to him. “Mochizuki, it’s been a while. I came to watch Geki, I’m looking forward to this.” He got up early especially to come see me. I was so moved when he said “Zyuranger is such a memorable Sentai”.

Regarding the movie, he expressed his liking of the film and the similarities it has to the original Zyuranger storyline:

I can’t really say much without spoiling the movie, but anyway, the movie was good! The camera angles, plenty of CG that was really effective, very Hollywood. It was made targeted at a wide range of ages.

It shares similarities with Japanese Sentai, it has 5 youngsters, each with their own problems, up against giant obstacles, overcoming twists and turns, becoming comrades and producing bonds and joining forces to face everything. The catchphrase for the movie is Together We Are More, that’s right on the mark. These rangers too have this affinity and comradery.

I want tokusatsu, as a Japanese traditional, to continue on 50 years, 100 years and more, even more than that! For the kids (and adult friends too!)! And for me!

The Power Rangers movie will premiere in Japan on July 15, 2017.

Source: Yuuta Mochizuki’s Facebook