“Game of Death” / 「死亡遊戯」, Original Japanese Bruce Lee Poster 1978, B2 Size (51 × 73 cm) A262

This is an original Japanese B2 poster printed in 1978 for Game of Death / 「死亡遊戯」, the posthumously released Bruce Lee martial arts film that became one of the most famous and commercially successful titles associated with his legacy in Japan.

Few images in martial arts cinema are more iconic than Bruce Lee in his yellow-and-black track suit, and this poster distills that image into a striking, minimal, highly collectible design.

Film background

Game of Death follows Billy Lo, a successful martial arts film star who becomes the target of a violent crime syndicate. After faking his own death, he launches a counterattack and infiltrates the organisation’s stronghold, ascending a multi-level pagoda and confronting a series of martial arts masters, each representing a different combat discipline.

The film was directed by Robert Clouse, incorporating original footage shot earlier by Bruce Lee before his death in 1973. The screenplay is credited to Jan Spears, a pseudonym of Robert Clouse. The cast includes Bruce Lee, Gig Young, Dean Jagger, Colleen Camp, Hugh O’Brian, and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.

Although the final film has long been discussed for the way it was completed after Lee’s death, its climactic fight scenes remain legendary, and the film played a major role in cementing the enduring global mythology of Bruce Lee.

Poster design

The poster uses a clean, image-dominant landscape composition, centred on a close-up of Bruce Lee in his famous yellow-and-black jumpsuit. He faces toward the right with a focused, confident expression, holding his hands in a classic Jeet Kune Do fighting stance.

His forward arm projects dramatically into the foreground, while the background is formed by a softly lit geometric shoji-style screen, giving the image both atmosphere and graphic structure. The result is unusually restrained and elegant, allowing the power of Bruce Lee’s image alone to carry the design.

Unlike more text-heavy Japanese film posters of the era, this piece keeps promotional matter to an absolute minimum, emphasizing the purity of the photograph and the instant recognisability of the subject.

At the lower left appears a small distributor emblem, while the lower right corner bears the publisher mark:

「★ SEIKODO」

This understated layout gives the poster a strong display presence and makes it especially appealing to collectors of Bruce Lee material and 1970s Japanese cinema ephemera.

Release note

This poster was printed in Japan in 1978, during the Japanese release period and commercial circulation of Game of Death / 「死亡遊戯」.

It is an original period Japanese Bruce Lee poster, not a later reproduction or modern reprint.

Condition

Excellent condition. A highly attractive example, with strong colour, crisp imagery, and excellent overall display impact.

The reverse is blank, as expected for this type of commercial poster. There are light signs of age and handling consistent with an original poster from this period, but overall it presents extremely well.

Reference: A262.

Please review the photographs carefully, as they show the exact poster for sale.

This is an original 1978 Japanese poster.
It is not a reproduction or a reprint.

It is now over 45 years old.

Certificate of Authenticity included.