Netflix has set the global premiere date for The Queen of Villains, a new biopic series from Japan about the popular female wrestler Dump Matsumoto.
Dump Matsumoto, born Kaoru Matsumoto, may be retired now, but her fame is about to be reignited and spread across the globe when her story, as told in the upcoming biopic series, The Queen of Villains, launches on Netflix.
The drama reveals the untold story of Dump Matsumoto (played by Yuriyan Retriever, The Naked Director), who entered the ring as a professional wrestler in 1980 and went on to gain a cult-like popularity with her villain persona, one of the most disliked figures in Japanese wrestling history, over the course of that decade.
During the 1970s to 1980s, female pro-wrestling tag teams like Beauty Pair (Jackie Sato and Maki Ueda) and Crush Gals (Chigusa Nagayo and Lioness Asuka) were national icons in Japan. Not only did they compete in wrestling matches, they also sang and danced in the ring. Then there was Dump Matsumoto, who entertained audiences in a dramatically different way: by being the sworn rival of the Crush Gals, wreaking havoc in and out of the ring, and making all of Japan her enemy — which whipped the country into a fan frenzy. As a result, Dump Matsumoto ignited a boom in women’s wrestling in the 1980s, turning Japanese female wrestlers into a cultural phenomenon that captivated the nation and dominated television screens.
The Queen of Villains, a Netflix Series, premieres globally on Thursday, September 19, exclusively on Netflix. (You can set a reminder for it now.)
Costarring in the five-episode series as the Crush Gals are Erika Karata (Arthdal Chronicles) as Chigusa Nagayo, who rose to stardom after beginning her career as a failed wrestling trainee, and Ayame Goriki (Black Butler) as Lioness Asuka, known for being the most athletic and technical wrestler amongst her peers.
The real-life Chigusa Nagayo also worked on the show, leading the actors’ physical training and supervising the wrestling scenes.
The series’ developer, producer, and screenwriter is Osamu Suzuki (Love Like a K-Drama), who was inspired to turn Dump Matsumoto’s story into a television series after hearing her talk about the women’s pro wrestling era on his show. The director is Katsuhito Mogi (Good Stripes), with Kazuya Shiraishi (The Blood of Wolves) as supervising director. Along with Suzuki, Junya Ikegami (The Blood of Wolves) is a writer on the series. The producers are Haruhiko Hasegawa (Girl Gun Lady) and Hidehisa Chiwata (Girls’ Blood).
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