Due to the series' high popularity in

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

and the rest of the world, four films based on ''

Saint Seiya , also known as ''Saint Seiya: Knights of the Zodiac'' or simply ''Knights of the Zodiac'' (translated from the French title ''Les Chevaliers du Zodiaque''), is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Masami Kurumada. It ...

'' were released in theatres between 1987 and 1989, while the original

TV series A television show – or simply TV show – is any content produced for viewing on a television set which can be broadcast via over-the-air, satellite, or cable, excluding breaking news, advertisements, or trailers that are typically placed betw ...

was still airing. The plots of these films do not comply with the chronology of the

manga Manga (Japanese: 漫画 ) are comics or graphic novels originating from Japan. Most manga conform to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century, and the form has a long prehistory in earlier Japanese art. The term ''manga'' is u ...

anime is Traditional animation, hand-drawn and computer animation, computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside of Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, in Japan and in Japane ...

storylines and therefore it is unknown at what point the events of the films take place. A fifth film named ''Heaven Chapter: Overture'' was released in 2004, originally intended to initiate a continuation of the manga. A sixth film, '' Legend of Sanctuary'', was premiered in 2014. The first two movies received a theatrical release in France under ''Les Chevaliers du Zodiaque: La Légende de la Pomme d'Or'', and ''La Guerre des Dieux'', where ''Knights of the Zodiac'' was at its prime popularity in that country. These films were never released in the U.S until it was announced by

Discotek Media Discotek Media is an American entertainment company based in Altamonte Springs, Florida, focused on distribution and licensing Japanese anime, films, and television series. Formed in 2005, Discotek primarily focuses on licensing retro titles fr ...

in 2012 that they had acquired the rights to the first four movies in a two disc set. The DVDs contain the original Japanese audio track with English subtitles.

Evil Goddess Eris (1987)

:''Original title: ''Saint Seiya: Gekijōban'' or ''Saint Seiya: Jashin Eris When Seiya, Hyōga and Shun visit Saori (Athena) at the orphanage, they meet an employee called Eri. An orphan herself, Eri takes a liking to Hyōga and one night they sit outside watching the stars. They see a shooting star and Hyōga asks Eri to make a wish. After Hyōga leaves, however, Eri becomes powerfully attracted to the shooting star and wanders alone into the woods, where she finds a

golden apple The golden apple is an element that appears in various national and ethnic folk legends or fairy tales. Recurring themes depict a hero (for example Hercules or Făt-Frumos) retrieving the golden apple (symbolism), apples hidden or stolen by a mons ...

. She is then possessed by Eris, the Goddess of Discord, and kidnaps Athena, planning to use the golden apple to suck her energy out, fully reincarnate and take over the world. Eris leaves a message for the Bronze Saints, who set out for the goddess's temple which appears on the mountains. There, the heroes fight the five Ghost Saints:

Sagitta Sagitta is a dim but distinctive constellation in the northern sky. Its name is Latin for 'arrow', not to be confused with the significantly larger constellation Sagittarius 'the archer'. It was included among the 48 constellations listed by t ...

Maya,

Lyra Lyra (; Latin for lyre, from Greek ''λύρα'') is a small constellation. It is one of the 48 listed by the 2nd century astronomer Ptolemy, and is one of the modern 88 constellations recognized by the International Astronomical Union. Lyra was ...

Orpheus,

Southern Cross Crux () is a constellation of the southern sky that is centred on four bright stars in a cross-shaped asterism commonly known as the Southern Cross. It lies on the southern end of the Milky Way's visible band. The name ''Crux'' is Latin for c ...

Khristós,

Scutum The ''scutum'' (; plural ''scuta'') was a type of shield used among Italic peoples in antiquity, most notably by the army of ancient Rome starting about the fourth century BC. The Romans adopted it when they switched from the military formati ...

Jan and Orion Jäger.

The Heated Battle of the Gods (1988)

:''Original title: ''Saint Seiya: Kamigami no Atsuki Tatakai is the second

film by

Toei Animation () is a Japanese animation studio primarily controlled by its namesake Toei Company. It has produced numerous series, including ''Sally the Witch,'' ''GeGeGe no Kitarō,'' ''Mazinger Z'', ''Galaxy Express 999'', ''Cutie Honey'', ''Dr. Slump'', ' ...

based on the ''

'' manga. It premiered on March 12, 1988 in the Toei Manga Matsuri film festival along with the movie versions of ''

Lady Lady!! is a Japanese manga series written and illsutrated by Youko Hanabusa. It was published by Akita Shoten in the ''shōjo'' manga magazine ''Hitomi Comics'' from 1987 to 1993 and collected in 12 tankoubon volumes. The manga series was ada ...

'', ''

Bikkuriman is a line of wafer snacks produced by Lotte, made notable for the randomly assorted bonus stickers included inside each snack. First released in 1977, Bikkuriman (ビックリマン, “Surprise Man”) became wildly popular in Japan w ...

'' and ''

Kamen Rider Black is a tokusatsu superhero-drama television series. It is the eighth installment in the '' Kamen Rider '' series and a co-production between Ishimori Productions and Toei. The series aired on the Mainichi Broadcasting System and the Tokyo Broadcas ...

''. The soundtrack was composed by

Seiji Yokoyama was a Japanese incidental music composer from Hiroshima. He graduated from the Kunitachi College of Music in 1957. Yokoyama is best known for his work on the anime series ''Saint Seiya'' and ''Space Pirate Captain Harlock'', and for his symp ...

and released in the Saint Seiya Original Soundtrack IV – The Heated Battle of the Gods CD. In Siberia, Hyōga saves a man that is being attacked. Injured, the man manages only to say something about

Asgard In Nordic mythology, Asgard (Old Norse: ''Ásgarðr'' ; "enclosure of the Æsir") is a location associated with the gods. It appears in a multitude of Old Norse sagas and mythological texts. It is described as the fortified home of the Æsir ...

. Some days later, Saori, Seiya, Shiryū and Shun are wondering about Hyōga and decide to go to Asgard to investigate. At

Valhalla In Norse mythology Valhalla (;) is the anglicised name for non, Valhǫll ("hall of the slain").Orchard (1997:171–172) It is described as a majestic hall located in Asgard and presided over by the god Odin. Half of those who die in combat e ...

, the Lord of Asgard, Dolbar, says he has not heard of any Hyōga and neither has his right hand, Loki. However, at all times Seiya and the others can feel an evil cosmo emanating from Loki and the other Odin Saints called God Warriors. Shiryū, in particular, notices a familiar cosmo coming from Midgard, a mysterious, masked God Warrior. Dolbar makes it clear that he is trying to take control of both Asgard and the Sanctuary, imprisoning Athena in a strange dimension within the giant statue of

Odin Odin (; from non, Óðinn, ) is a widely revered Æsir, god in Germanic paganism. Norse mythology, the source of most surviving information about him, associates him with wisdom, healing, death, royalty, the gallows, knowledge, war, battle, v ...

. Midgard reveals himself as Hyōga and tries to kill Shiryū to prove himself to Dolbar. Thus, it is the task of the Bronze Saints to defeat Dolbar, Loki and the rest of the God Warriors, to save Athena and Hyōga. Due to this film's popularity,

created the Asgard saga for the anime, which did not originally appear in the manga and is set between the Sanctuary and Poseidon arcs of the story.

Legend of Crimson Youth (1988)

:''Original title: ''Saint Seiya: Shinku no Shōnen Densetsu is the third

film by

based on the ''

'' manga. Unlike its predecessors, which premiered on the Toei Manga Matsuri film festivals, this installment was instead shown at the '' Weekly Jump'' 20th Anniversary Festival along with the animated movie version of ''

Sakigake!! Otokojuku , also known as simply ''Otokojuku'', is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Akira Miyashita. It was originally serialized in Shueisha's ''Weekly Shōnen Jump'' from 1985 to 1991. It is staged in an all-boys school that ...

''. Athena receives the visit of Phoebus Abel, her older brother and God of the

Corona Corona (from the Latin for 'crown') most commonly refers to: * Stellar corona, the outer atmosphere of the Sun or another star * Corona (beer), a Mexican beer * Corona, informal term for the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2, which causes the COVID-19 di ...

. He informs her that he has come to destroy humanity as punishment for their corruption, just as it was done in ancient times. He dismisses Seiya and the Bronze Saints, as she will now be guarded by Abel's three Corona Saints, Atlas of

Carina Carina may refer to: Places Australia * Carina, Queensland, a suburb in Brisbane * Carina Heights, Queensland, a suburb in Brisbane * Carina, Victoria, a locality in Mildura Serbia * Carina, Osečina, a village in the Kolubara District ...

, Jaō of

Lynx A lynx is a type of wild cat. Lynx may also refer to: Astronomy * Lynx (constellation) * Lynx (Chinese astronomy) * Lynx X-ray Observatory, a NASA-funded mission concept for a next-generation X-ray space observatory Places Canada * Lynx, Ontar ...

and Berenice of

Coma Berenices Coma Berenices is an ancient asterism in the northern sky, which has been defined as one of the 88 modern constellations. It is in the direction of the fourth galactic quadrant, between Leo and Boötes, and it is visible in both hemisphere ...

, and the five resurrected Gold Saints who died in the Sanctuary battle: Saga of

Gemini Gemini may refer to: Space * Gemini (constellation), one of the constellations of the zodiac ** Gemini in Chinese astronomy * Project Gemini, the second U.S. crewed spaceflight program * Gemini Observatory, consisting of telescopes in the Northern ...

, Deathmask of

Cancer Cancer is a group of diseases involving abnormal cell growth with the potential to invade or spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Possible signs and symptoms include a lump, abnormal b ...

, Shura of Capricorn, Camus of

Aquarius Aquarius may refer to: Astrology * Aquarius (astrology), an astrological sign * Age of Aquarius, a time period in the cycle of astrological ages Astronomy * Aquarius (constellation) * Aquarius in Chinese astronomy Arts and entertainme ...

and Aphrodite of

Pisces Pisces may refer to: * Pisces, an obsolete (because of land vertebrates) taxonomic superclass including all fish * Pisces (astrology), an astrological sign * Pisces (constellation), a constellation **Pisces Overdensity, an overdensity of stars in ...

. When Athena rebels against Abel's plan, he attacks her, sending her soul to

Elysion Elysium (, ), otherwise known as the Elysian Fields ( grc, Ἠλύσιον πεδίον, ''Ēlýsion pedíon'') or Elysian Plains, is a conception of the afterlife that developed over time and was maintained by some Greek religious and philos ...

, the final resting place from which there is no return. The Bronze Saints immediately rush to the Sanctuary to save her and ultimately overcome Abel. Unlike the other ''Saint Seiya'' movies made in the 1980s, this one was a full featured film, having a running time of 75 minutes. The events occur sometime after the Poseidon saga and before the Fallen Angels saga (4th movie).

Warriors of the Final Holy Battle (1989)

:Original title: ''Saint Seiya: Saishū Seisen no Senshitachi'' ( 聖闘士星矢最終聖戦の戦士たち) The plot involves the coming of

Lucifer Lucifer is one of various figures in folklore associated with the planet Venus. The entity's name was subsequently absorbed into Christianity as a name for the devil. Modern scholarship generally translates the term in the relevant Bible passage ...

to the Sanctuary, where his underlings systematically dispose of the surviving Gold Saints. Athena goes to Lucifer to ask for peace, placing herself in peril. The Bronze Saints must then come to her rescue, destroying Lucifer's Fallen Angels (''Seima Tenshi'' in Japanese) in the process. The soundtrack was composed by

and released in the Saint Seiya Original Soundtrack VIII – Warriors of the Final Holy Battle CD.

Heaven Chapter: Overture (2004)

:''Original title: ''Saint Seiya: Tenkaihen Josō Overture After the success of the OVA series ''Hades - Chapter Sanctuary'', this movie served as a continuation to the Hades saga. Injured after his confrontation with Hades, Seiya is in a wheelchair and vegetative state under Saori's care. The Goddess Artemis, Saori's older sister, comes to Earth and strikes a bargain with her. In return for restoring Seiya's mind and body, she will take control over Sanctuary. Now Seiya and his fellow Bronze saints must fight Zeus and his Angels to restore their homeland. Hoping that it may bring peace on Earth, Saori goes to the Sanctuary and starts spilling her blood. Upon invading the Sanctuary, the Bronze Saints learn that Athena was banished by Artemis and decide to fight the moon goddess in order to rescue their true goddess and free the Earth from Artemis's ominous control. The movie focuses mostly on Seiya and Athena, as the other Bronze Saints are not seen as much; they only appear during their respective fights with the other Angels, and briefly towards the end. However,

Eagle Marin The following list comprises the characters that form the three ranks of the army of the Greek goddess Athena, in the Japanese manga ''Saint Seiya'' and the canonical sequel and prequel '' Saint Seiya Next Dimension'', written and illustrated by ...

also appears, as

Ophiuchus Shaina The following list comprises the characters that form the three ranks of the army of the Greek goddess Athena, in the Japanese manga ''Saint Seiya'' and the canonical sequel and prequel ''Saint Seiya Next Dimension'', written and illustrated by Ma ...

Unicorn Jabu The following list comprises the characters that form the three ranks of the army of the Greek goddess Athena, in the Japanese manga ''Saint Seiya'' and the canonical sequel and prequel ''Saint Seiya Next Dimension'', written and illustrated by Ma ...

, and Hydra Ichi do, though the latter three are just cameos. The movie also has a very ambiguous ending, with many plot points and danglers unresolved with rushed out spott animation. Also many cut from it original script such as Seiya's cloth early in the film, Seika’s appeared and crucial important role was outmitted, two more angels opponent for other Saint to fight, world building of content even rewritten that the Libra Cloth box was supposed to be in the film at one time.

Legend of Sanctuary (2014)

Live-action film (2023)

A live-action film was announced at Comic Con Brazil 2016. On September 21, 2021, ''

The Hollywood Reporter ''The Hollywood Reporter'' (''THR'') is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Cinema of the United States, Hollywood film industry, film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade pap ...

'' reported that Tomasz Baginski will direct the live action film, Josh Campbell and Matt Stuecken will write the film and

Andy Cheng Cheng Kai-Chung, also known as Andy Cheng, is a Hong Kong actor, stuntman, choreographer, martial artist, and director. He was a prominent member of the Jackie Chan Stunt Team from the late 1990s to early 2000s until he broke out on his own a ...

will be the stunt coordinator and fight coordinator for the that will star

Mackenyu is an American-born Japanese actor. He is the son of Japanese actor, producer, director, and martial artist Sonny Chiba. Mackenyu rose to fame after portraying Wataya Arata in the Chihayafuru live-action trilogy in 2016, which earned him the ...

as Seiya,

Madison Iseman Madison Iseman (born February 14, 1997) is an American actress. She is known for playing Charlotte in the CMT comedy television series ''Still the King'', She is also known for playing Rain Burroughs in ''Fear of Rain'', Bethany Walker in '' Jum ...

as Sienna,

Sean Bean Sean Bean (born Shaun Mark Bean on 17 April 1959) is an English actor. After graduating from the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, Bean made his professional debut in a theatre production of ''Romeo and Juliet'' in 1983. Retaining his Yorkshire ac ...

as Alman Kiddo and

Diego Tinoco Diego Alejandro Tinoco (born November 25, 1997) is an American actor. He is best known for playing Cesar Diaz in Netflix series ''On My Block''. Early life Tinoco was born on November 25, 1997 in Anaheim, California. His father is Mexican and ...

as a man hired to kill the vulnerable goddess.

Famke Janssen Famke Beumer Janssen (; born ) is a Dutch actress. She played Xenia Onatopp in ''GoldenEye'' (1995), Jean Grey / Phoenix in the ''X-Men'' film series (2000–2014), and Lenore Mills in the ''Taken'' film trilogy (2008–2014). In 2008, she ...

Nick Stahl Nicolas Kent Stahl (born December 5, 1979) is an American actor. Starting out as a child actor, he gained recognition for his performance in the 1993 film ''The Man Without a Face'', co-starring Mel Gibson. He later transitioned into his adult ...

and

Mark Dacascos Mark Alan Dacascos (born February 26, 1964) is an American actor, martial artist and television personality. He won numerous karate and kung fu championships between the ages of 7 and 18. He is known for his roles as Wo Fat in ''Hawaii Five-0'' ...

are also cast in the film. Filming will take place in

Hungary Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia a ...

and

Croatia , image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg , anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland") , image_map = , map_caption = , capit ...

. The film will be released in 2023.

References

{{Toei Animation films 2000s

Films A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmosphere ...

2004 anime films

Japanese animated fantasy films Discotek Media

Lists of films based on manga