Toho Keeping The Ending To 20th Century Boys A Secret

Written By: Ken Hulsey
Source: Variety

Toho wants to keep the ending to Yukihiko Tsutsumi's "20th Century Boys" trilogy an absolute secret. They aren't even going to let the press see it.

The studio is set to begin press screenings of ""20th Century Boys The Last Chapter: Our Flag" in late July, minus the last ten minutes of the film. The reason for this unprecedented action is to keep the identity of the mysterious cult leader, called only "Friend" (Tomodachi), from getting leaked.

In fact, the cast doesn't even know the character's identity. While the film was in production, scripts were handed out on a need-to-know basis and in total, only 10 people know how the film truly concludes.

"20th Century Boys" Synopsis:

In 1969, young boys Kenji, Otcho, Yoshitsune and Maruo build, in an empty field, a hideout they name their secret base, in which they and their friends can get together to share manga, stolen porn magazines and listen to a radio. To celebrate the event, Otcho draws a symbol for the base, that would represent their friendship. After their friends Yukiji and Donkey join the gang, they imagine a future scenario where villains would try to destroy the world, and in which the boys would stand up and fight; this scenario is transcribed and labeled "Book of Prophecy".

The trilogy opens in the late 1990s, where Kenji is a convenience store owner, finding solace in his childhood adventures as he takes care of his niece Kanna and his mother. After Donkey is reported to have committed suicide, Kenji stumbles upon a large cult led by a man known only as "Friend". The cult has a plan to destroy the world on New Year's Eve of 2000, (referred to in the latter half of the story as the Bloody New Year's Eve,) and the events that are currently unfolding are suspiciously close to the plan documented in the "Book of Prophecy".
Kenji begins to recruit some of his older friends, including Otcho and Yoshitsune, in an attempt to stop "Friend".

See Also: 20th Century Boys Has A Paris Premiere / A Major PR Event For 20th Century Boys / Viz To Release 20th Century Boys Plus Several Other New Manga Titles In 2009 / 20th Century Boys Teaser Trailer / Filming Begins On 20th Century Boys