5 Days Left: Watch Keanu Reeves in 47 Ronin Before It Vanishes Amid Whitewashing Backlash
Last call: 47 Ronin leaves Netflix USA on January 1, so you’ve only days to stream the Keanu Reeves samurai fantasy before it disappears. Released in 2013 and directed by Carl Rinsch, it scored 6.2 on IMDb and 16% on Rotten Tomatoes—catch it while it’s still on Netflix.
If 47 Ronin has been lingering on your Netflix list, now is the time to actually hit play. The Keanu Reeves samurai-fantasy is leaving Netflix USA on January 1, 2026, which means you have only a few days left before it vanishes again.
Quick snapshot
- Director: Carl Rinsch
- Release date: January 3, 2013
- IMDb: 6.2/10
- Rotten Tomatoes: 16%
Here’s the setup: Reeves plays Kai, a half-Japanese outcast who falls in with a band of samurai out for revenge, loosely inspired by the legend of the forty-seven ronin. The movie looks slick and swings big on spectacle. It also took plenty of heat when it came out — not just for critics shrugging at the story, but for a familiar Hollywood headache: whitewashing accusations.
Why the casting debate never really died
The original legend revolves around the ronin themselves — loyalty, sacrifice, honor — so fans expected the movie to center those warriors. Instead, the film builds a lot of its emotional arc around Kai, an invented character who wasn’t part of the historical tale. He’s written as a mixed-race outsider who becomes crucial to the mission. That shift in point of view is where the backlash started.
To be clear, the movie does feature Japanese actors and plenty of cultural trappings, but the story is mostly filtered through the new outsider lead. Add the fact that the movie doesn’t pretend to be a straight historical retelling — it leans into fantasy more than realism — and you can see why the argument over whose story is being told never really went away.
Meanwhile, Netflix has been quietly trimming Keanu
By the time 47 Ronin rolls off, it won’t be the first Reeves title to exit the service. His films have been cycling in and out for years, and the bench is thinner lately. The Matrix trilogy, The Lake House, and The Devil’s Advocate have all left recently; The Matrix also dropped off Netflix earlier this year. Keanu’s popularity hasn’t dipped, but what’s actually streamable on Netflix definitely has.
For a lot of people, Netflix is the easiest way to rewatch older films without chasing down five other apps. The catch is the same as always: if a Reeves movie is there today, don’t assume it’ll be there next month.
Bottom line: 47 Ronin is available on Netflix USA until January 1, 2026. If you’ve been curious — whether for the sword fights or to see what the controversy was about — now’s your window. Worth a watch before it disappears? Tell me in the comments.