The live-action Street Fighter film has officially begun production, and along with it, the makers have revealed the players, their characters and respective country. Legendary Studios and Paramount Pictures have come together for a three-year deal to distribute the former's movies and Street Fighter is the first of many. Directed by Kitao Sakurai (Bad Trip, Aardvark), the film will now open in theatres on October 16, 2026.
For Indian audiences, the upcoming film is special as actor Vidyut Jammwal is all set to make his Hollywood debut as Dhalsim.
The character was introduced in Street Fighter II in 1991 and he is a peaceful yogi known for his elasticity and ability to breathe fire. He fights in tournaments in order to support his family.
He will feature alongside a star-studded cast consisting of Noah Centineo as Ken Masters, Andrew Koji as Ryu, Callina Liang as Chun-Li, Joe "Roman Reigns" Anoa’i as Akuma, David Dastmalchian as M. Bison, Cody Rhodes as Guile, Andrew Schulz as Dan Hibiki, Eric André as Don Sauvage, Vidyut Jammwal as Dhalsim, with Curtis "50 Cent" Jackson as Balrog and Jason Momoa as Blanka.
The upcoming film is set in 1993 and revolves around estranged Street Fighters Ryu (Andrew Koji) and Ken Masters (Noah Centineo) who are thrown back into combat when the mysterious Chun-Li (Callina Liang) recruits them for the next World Warrior Tournament. "But behind this battle royale lies a deadly conspiracy that forces them to face off against each other and the demons of their past. And if they don’t, it’s game over!" reads the official plotline of the film.
Other actors part of the cast are Orville Peck as Vega, Olivier Richters as Zangief, Hirooki Goto as E. Honda, Rayna Vallandingham as Juli, Alexander Volkanovski as Joe, Kyle Mooney as Marvin and Mel Jarnson as Cammy.
One of the best-selling video game franchises of all time, Street Fighter is a fighter game that was originally developed for arcades in the 1980s. Since then, it has spawned numerous sequels and the latest installment in the video game franchise, Street Fighter 6, was released last year.
The 1994 screen adaptation, directed by Steven E de Souza, starred Jean-Claude Van Damme as Guile, Raúl Juliá as M. Bison, and Ming-Na Wen as Chun-Li. Director Steven E. de Souza’s feature centered on a colonel (Van Damme) gathering a group of fighters to help free a collection of kidnapped UN delegates.
Later, in 2009, Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li, directed by Andrzej Bartkowiak, was released mostly to poor performance at the box office.
