The Ring (franchise)

The franchise began with Koji Suzuki's 1991 novel Ring. It was the first of a trilogy, with two sequels: Spiral (1995) and Loop (1998).[1] Several later novels based on Ring were released: Birthday (1999) [which contains a prequel to Ring, an epilogue to Loop, and details what happened to a key character in Spiral], S (2012), and Tide (2013).

In 1998, Hideo Nakata made a new Japanese adaptation of the book in his film Ring, initiating the franchise. The original sequel to this was Rasen, an adaptation of Spiral (Suzuki's sequel to his first Ring book). However, due to poor reception, a new sequel, Ring 2, was released in 1999 which continued the storyline of Ring, but was not based on Suzuki's books. This was followed by a 2000 prequel, Ring 0: Birthday, which was based on the short story "Lemon Heart" from Suzuki's 1999 book, Birthday. These films delved into a uniquely different mythos surrounding Sadako Yamamura and the cursed videotape. These changes led the franchise to attain a cult status, both domestically and internationally, popularizing the Japanese horror genre as a whole and the stringy black-haired yūrei trope.

In 2012, Sadako 3D was released, adapted from Suzuki's book S, and in 2013 Sadako 3D 2 was released, continuing the timeline of Spiral.

Sadako was released on May 24, 2019, with Hideo Nakata returning as director. This marks the first entry in his timeline since Ring 2, 20 years prior.

The first adaption of Ring was the Japanese television film Ring (titled Ring: Kanzenban for home video release), released in 1995. This remained the closest to the book but didn't have the success and recognition of the later films.

Ring: The Final Chapter is a 12 episode self-contained miniseries that aired in 1999, and is loosely based on the original Ring novel. It is not connected to the films or the previous television adaptation.

In the same year, a sequel television miniseries titled Rasen was made, consisting of 13 episodes.

In 2016, Sadako vs. Kayako, directed by Kōji Shiraishi, was released, a crossover of the Ju-on series of horror films, though not canon to either timeline, as the deadline for the video tape is 2 days instead of 7. It features Sadakaya, a ghost that resulted from the fusion of Sadako and the Ju-on antagonist Kayako Saeki.

Several manga series have been published by Kadokawa Shoten based on the films. The second manga adaptation is a two-volume series based on the first novel. The manga was written Hiroshi Takahashi and illustrated by Misao Inagaki. Both volumes were released on January 21, 1999.[2][3] Dark Horse Comics compiled the first two volumes and released an english-language version on November 12, 2003.[4]

The third adaptation, was written by Hiroshi Takahashi and illustrated by Meimu, was released on February 3, 1999.[5] Dark Horse Comics released it on May 19, 2004 as the second volume of the Ring manga series.[6]

The fourth adaptation, titled Spiral (らせん, Rasen), is based on the novel and film of the same name. The manga was written by Koji Suzuki, illustrated by Sakura Mizuki, and released on September 10, 1999.[7] Dark Horse released it on August 18, 2004 as volume 3 of the Ring manga series.[8]

The fifth adaptation, titled Birthday (バースデイ, Bāsudei), is based on the novel and film of the same name. The manga was written by Hiroshi Takahashi, illustrated by Meimu and released on December 22, 1999.[9] Dark Horse Comics released it on November 3, 2004 as volume 4 of the Ring manga series.[10]

The sixth, named "Ring 0", was also written by Hiroshi Takahashi and illustrated by Meimu, and released on January 28, 2000.[11] Dark Horse Comics released it on March 30, 2005 as "Volume 0" of the Ring manga series.[12]

Rachel Keller is a journalist investigating a videotape that may have killed four teenagers (including her niece). There is an urban legend about this tape: the viewer will die seven days after watching it. If the legend is correct, Rachel would have to run against time to save her son's and her own.

Jake Pierce, a young teenager watches a cursed video tape after joining a teen cult named "Rings".

A high school student named Jake Pierce tries to make his girlfriend Emily watch the cursed videotape. But then Jake finds out that Emily covered her eyes and didn't watch the tape, and then Jake is killed by Samara Morgan from the first film. Rachel Keller learns of Jake's death and realizes she has to save her son Aidan from Samara.

Julia becomes worried about her boyfriend when he explores a dark subculture surrounding a mysterious videotape said to kill the watcher seven days after he has viewed it. She sacrifices herself to save her boyfriend and in doing so makes a horrifying discovery: there is a "movie within the movie" that no one has ever seen before.

In September 2019, The Grudge director Nicolas Pesce expressed interest in a crossover film between The Grudge and the American The Ring film series.[13]

Key

• A ^Y indicates the actor portrayed the role of a younger version of the character.
• A ^V indicates the actor or actress lent only his or her voice for his or her film character.
• A ^P indicates the actor or actress portrayed their film character as possessed by another.
• An ^A indicates an appearance through archival footage.
• A ^C indicates a cameo appearance.

• A dark gray cell indicates the character was not in the film.

Key

• A ^Y indicates the actor portrayed the role of a younger version of the character.
• A ^V indicates the actor or actress lent only his or her voice for his or her film character.
• A ^P indicates the actor or actress portrayed their film character as possessed by another.
• An ^A indicates an appearance through archival footage.
• A ^C indicates a cameo appearance.

• A dark gray cell indicates the character was not in the film.

In his review of Sadako (2019), the film critic and psychoanalyst Pieter-Jan Van Haecke remarked that while Sadako does not work as a horror movie, the atmospheric tension that marks the films turn the film into an enjoyable experience.