Street Fighter has well over 150 characters, so ensuring that they are recognizable and distinct was a Herculean task for the movie’s stunt coordinator, John Valera.
In an interview with GamesRadar+, Ken actor Noah Centineo claimed that production went to extraordinary lengths to ensure that the film stayed true to the games, and that meant studying every single character and their unique fighting styles.
“Meticulous Attention Was Paid To Detail”
“Every character comes from a different background, pretty much, right?” Centineo said. “So, there’s like over almost 150 characters, all the different backgrounds, different fighting styles, and John Valera had to research for every character and every fight that they were in their specific fighting style.
“The signature moves in the game [are in the movie], so that he could make them fight against each other in their signature styles, in their specific fighting styles” he continued. “Meticulous attention was paid to detail, and I think it’s really a triumph. The movie has insane fights, and every character is brutal.”
If you’ve ever watched those videos of martial artists reacting to and trying to recreate moves from video games, you’ll understand how much of a challenge that really is. A lot of the signature moves just aren’t feasible, or downright impossible, in real life, but there are so many iconic ones that are vital if you want it to feel like Street Fighter, from Ryu’s energy-blasting Hadouken to Chun-Li’s complex Spinning Bird Kick.
The choreography has to capture the exaggerated movements that make the games so distinctive, while also ensuring they’re physically convincing in a live-action fight. It’s not a tightrope I’d envy anyone having to walk. But judging by the trailers, Valera and the crew have pulled it off.
We’ll find out soon enough, anyway, with Street Fighter hitting cinemas on October 16.
- Release Date
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October 16, 2026
- Runtime
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119 Minutes
- Director
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Kitao Sakurai
Cast
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Noah Centineo
Ken Masters
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