‘Street Fighter’ Star Confirms Long-Term Franchise Plans Are Already in Motion

Whereas at CinemaCon 2026, Collider’s Steve Weintraub had the chance to meet up with Noah Centineo, who was celebrated with the Star of Tomorrow award on the Large Display screen Achievement Awards this 12 months, alongside fellow honorees James Cameron, Queen Latifah, Adam Scott, and extra. This specific accolade highlights stars on the rise with an epic slate of initiatives on the horizon. Centineo, greatest recognized for his roles in To All of the Boys I’ve Beloved Earlier than, Black Adam, Warfare, and Netflix’s The Recruit, couldn’t be a extra becoming recipient with the lineup of options he’s bought coming our means, together with this 12 months’s Avenue Fighter with Paramount Footage.

From director Kitao Sakurai (Beef, Butterfly), this hotly anticipated arcade adaptation takes audiences again to 1993 and reintroduces all our favourite characters on the largest display. The film is filmed for IMAX, and can characteristic the entire sport’s most iconic strikes, Hadoukens, and a narrative that reunites Ryu (Andrew Koji) and Ken Masters (Centineo), when Chun-Li (Callina Liang) recruits them for the World Warrior Event. Avenue Fighter additionally stars Jason Momoa as Blanka, David Dastmalchian as M. Bison, Eric André as Don Sauvage, 50 Cent as Balrog, Mel Jarnson as Cammy, and Olivier Richters as Zangief.

Try the complete dialog within the video above, or within the transcript beneath, the place Centineo discusses the extreme coaching routine he and the solid underwent to arrange for Avenue Fighters earlier than ever calling motion, who out of the solid is the perfect Avenue Fighter participant, and which scene he can’t await followers to see on display. This Star of Tomorrow additionally shares particulars on how he grew to become John Rambo for the prequel movie, from Sisu director Jalmari Helander, and the emotional scene that grew to become his “North Star” all through filming, in addition to teases the live-action adaptation of Gundam, alongside Sydney Sweeney.

‘Avenue Fighter’ Film Recreates Psycho Crusher, Twister Kicks, and Extra Traditional Strikes

“We did six weeks of coaching earlier than we ever mentioned motion.”

Picture through Legendary Footage

COLLIDER: Let’s discuss a very powerful factor, which is that the Avenue Fighter footage appears superior. One of many issues I’ve actually taken away from right here at CinemaCon is that you simply guys have recreated strikes from the sport, particularly Avenue Fighter II, for the film. Speak somewhat bit about that.

NOAH CENTINEO: Completely. Jon Valera, our stunt coordinator, is a monster. He is revered within the stunt business, and now I do know why, definitely. When designing the fights, they needed to remain true to the actual characters and their totally different combating types and their particular strikes, and so we did six weeks of coaching earlier than we ever mentioned motion, me, [Andrew] Koji, and Callina [Liang]. Callina, their combating model was extra wushu. Koji had extra gōjū-ryū blended with Shotokan karate, and I used to be extra Shotokan karate blended with somewhat little bit of Muay Thai kickboxing and boxing.

So, with the entire characters’ precise combating types in thoughts, that was how Jon Valera organized the entire fights within the movie. Then, you see it within the trailer, you see it within the teaser that was launched as properly, they’re simply all in there, whether or not it is the Psycho Crusher or Koji’s twister kick. The checklist goes on and on.

Who within the solid is the perfect at Avenue Fighter II?

CENTINEO: I feel it is Andrew Schulz. I am the worst, that is for positive. I am not good.

Did you play Ken within the sport and also you’re horrible?

CENTINEO: No, yeah. After I grew up, I all the time performed with Blanka or Dhalsim.

Dhalsim? You need to be superior to win with that character.

CENTINEO: Yeah, yeah, he is a tough character to play with.

I like Ken, and I like Zangief quite a bit.

CENTINEO: Zangief is loopy. I do know that Koji all the time performed with Ken or Ryu, and Callina solely performed with Chun-Li.

That is sensible.

CENTINEO: Effectively, it is sensible, too, as a result of for her, she was like, I am struggling to recollect precisely what she mentioned, however identical to she was the primary playable feminine character within the Avenue Fighter sport, and she or he was Chinese language, and Callina can be Chinese language, so she was identical to, “That is me.” So she performed along with her.

Completely.

Picture through Paramount Footage

This factor is loaded with motion, and it simply appears cool. Which sequence is that one that you simply’re like, “I can’t await Avenue Fighter followers to see it?”

CENTINEO: I do not suppose I can inform you a bunch, however there is a sequence the place all of the lighting is like purple, and it is within the trailer. It isn’t purple and blue, it is purple, and Zangief is concerned, and that sequence is uncooked. I will not inform you why. I simply love that complete sequence.

There is no means they’re serious about it as a one-and-done film, so speak somewhat bit about how a lot of the story did they inform you when it comes to, like, “If that is profitable, we’re serious about this sort of an arc for Ken, or this sort of an arc for this universe,” and the way a lot is kind of like, “Let’s simply make one film and let’s have a look at what occurs?”

CENTINEO: You are undoubtedly spot-on. They undoubtedly wish to do as many as they will, Legendary, Paramount, and I do too, in success. I might adore it. It was so enjoyable. I do not know the way a lot I can inform you, however I will say this: on the finish of the film, there’s a feeling of, like, you lastly know who these characters are, and so they settle, and also you go, “Oh, this is the group? I fuck with this, and I wish to see it many times and once more.”

So, I do not wish to inform you the place they need it to go, as a result of you must know the way this one ends first, however I’ll say that when this one ends, you actually perceive who the characters are, and it leaves you in a spot, at the very least for me after I completed it, the place I went, “Oh, that is a gaggle of those that I wish to see many times and once more.” So hopefully followers really feel the identical means.

‘John Rambo’ Prequel Is Impressed by ‘First Blood’s Most Emotional Scene

Centineo discusses how he went from rom-coms to an iconic motion franchise.

Picture through Tri-Star Footage

John Rambo: The place are you within the filming? What do you wish to inform followers in regards to the film?

CENTINEO: We wrapped on Wednesday.

Oh, wow.

CENTINEO: So it is performed. We needed to do justice to [Sylvester] Stallone’s and Rambo’s monologue in First Blood on the finish of the film, with him and Trautman on the police station, when he breaks down, and he explains he cannot preserve a job, and the trauma of what occurred earlier than. Not less than for me, that was my North Star for this prequel, as a result of our John Rambo is the prequel to that story. We wish folks to have a visceral understanding of what he went by that led him to develop into this revered character that we have all come to know.

So that is what you’ll be able to anticipate, and that is what I feel we have performed. Now, clearly, we have wrapped it 5 days in the past, so who is aware of? I do not know what the tip result’s going to be, but it surely feels actually, actually good. Jalmari [Helander]’s a monster, our director.

Is it PG-13, is it R? Is there violence? What is the tone?

CENTINEO: It’s not G. I’ll inform you that.

What was it in regards to the script, although? It is an iconic character. Was there any hesitation about taking the function? And what was it in regards to the script that mentioned, “I want to do that?”

CENTINEO: First, earlier than I even learn the script, I simply heard about it, and I believed, “I want to try this.” I do not actually know learn how to clarify it. I simply went, “I must be that man. I want to do that.” I simply had a sense. Then Jalmari would not meet with me, for good purpose. I feel I used to be To All of the Boys. I feel my public-facing persona on my Instagram, it’s totally straightforward to take a look at that and go, “Oh, that is the kind of particular person that’s,” and that is tremendous honest. He’ll inform you this, too. We love telling this story, Jalmari and I.

However he took a gathering finally. We wore him down. In that assembly, I had learn the script, and we bought to speaking, and I do not know, I suppose I lied, cheated, and stole my means into it, and burrowed my means into his head somewhat bit, and he began contemplating it. He was now open to consideration, and we saved speaking. We simply saved speaking and speaking. We’d Zoom. I used to be filming Union County on the time. We simply saved speaking, and at some point he known as me, and he mentioned, “You’re Rambo.” It was so surreal. I don’t know. It was a sense.

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‘Sisu 2’ Director Reveals Why Noah Centineo Has What It Takes to Lead His ‘John Rambo’ Prequel Film [Exclusive]

“What ‘First Blood’ did to me after I was 10 years outdated principally modified my life.”

Noah Centineo Says ‘Gundam’ Will Be “Fan-First” Simply Like ‘Avenue Fighter’

Manufacturing is now underway.

Picture through Netflix

I am virtually out of time with you, however I’ve to ask you about Gundam as a result of I have been ready for this. I have been ready for Robotech. I have been ready for Voltron. I’ve been ready for these properties. What do you wish to inform folks about Gundam? The place and when are you filming?

CENTINEO: Dude, I depart for Australia on Saturday. Saturday night time.

Oh, wow. So it is challenge to challenge?

CENTINEO: Right. Sydney Sweeney is there now. I feel the announcement for the beginning of manufacturing is popping out quickly, however we’re beginning manufacturing. You may put it out. I do not suppose they’re going to be too upset. So, I’m going on Saturday. It’ll be large. Jim Mickle, our director, he is bought all coronary heart. He is so delicate, all coronary heart, and he builds these fantastic huge worlds. I’ve seen among the previs, and I’ve seen what he is making an attempt to do and seeking to do, and it’s totally thrilling.

Sydney’s so candy, man. She’s giving every thing she’s bought to this. I am actually excited to get on the market and do that along with her. I feel it’ll be beautiful. We now have such an outstanding ensemble round this, as properly. Yeah, man, I feel individuals are going to love it.

The factor about Gundam is that it means a lot to so many individuals. Possibly not in America, however in Asia. In Japan, it is huge.

CENTINEO: Sure.

Simply huge. Big. So, how acquainted had been you with it, and the way do you suppose the film will honor the followers of the fabric based mostly on the script and what you understand?

CENTINEO: In the identical means that we had been fan-first on Avenue Fighter, we’re fan-first on Gundam. Legendary’s doing each of these, so for them it is essential. That is undoubtedly the precedence for them, so followers can anticipate the identical degree of meticulous consideration to element in the case of respecting the property and the IP that we have all come to know and love.

I knew the present. I might watch it again after I was a child, however apart from seeing it on Cartoon Community or Tsunami or one thing like that, that was just about the extent of my information of it. However now, after getting on board and watching extra of it, it is nice, dude. It’ll be nice.

Avenue Fighter opens in theaters on October 16.

Launch Date

October 16, 2026

Director

Kitao Sakurai

Writers

Dalan Musson