Today, hardly anyone still cares about The Ring film series, and not even in Japan has anything new been released in four years. In the early 2000s, however, it was the hottest horror franchise in the world of film, marking an international breakthrough for Japanese horror.
The movie series was based on a lesser-known book series written by Koji Suzuki, and there are six books published (one of which is a collection of short stories), but he has, of course, written much more, with the most recent release being Ubiquitous from 2025. And it’s far from just the Ring series that has been adapted into films; there are both anime and TV series based on his work.
But unfortunately, we have now received his final work, as Cinema Daily reports that he has sadly passed away at the age of 68. No cause of death has been given, but Suzuki died in a hospital in Tokyo.
World-renowned author Haruki Murakami wrote on Instagram:
“For many readers outside Japan, horror literature changed forever because of him. I read somewhere a blurb saying ‘Suzuki blends Murakami with Stephen King,’ and that’s quite accurate.”
We would, of course, like to thank this legend for scaring the living daylights out of us, and for leaving behind a legacy that will live on for a very long time to come.
“…seven days…” // DreamWorks Pictures
AloJapan.com