AKB48's Kitahara Rie has been picked up to play the heroine in the upcoming movie, "Graffreeter Toki".

Inspired by Itagaki Keisuke's manga series, "Grappler Baki",�"Graffreeter Toki" is the movie adaptation of the stage play that was put on in March of this year. Set in a downtown shopping street, the human comedy portrays the life of a young boy named Toki, whose mother raised him while teaching him the ways of the famous grappler, Baki. Toki and the people of the shopping district work together to protect the town from an evil organization.

Toki will be played by Sudo Ryota, while Saito Yuki will play the role of his mother. Tsuda Kanji will play the mysterious key character of the movie, and the leader of the evil organization will be played by Kendo Kobayashi. Other cast members include Yoshiki Risa, Katoono Taikou, and Chad Mullane.

Kitahara commented, "Being a heroine in my first movie, there is a lot of pressure, but I am very excited! I will do my best so many people would be interested in it! Please support me."

The movie is set for release in spring of 2012.

Source: natalie