# Death Note: The Last Name
**Death Note: The Last Name** (DEATH NOTE デスノート the Last name) is a 2006 Japanese live-action film, the second installment of a two-part adaptation of the *Death Note* manga by [Tsugumi Ohba](https://www.edgepedia.org/tsugumi-ohba) and [Takeshi Obata](https://www.edgepedia.org/takeshi-obata), directed by Shusuke Kaneko and released in Japan on November 3, 2006.[1](https://www.kinenote.com/main/public/cinema/detail.aspx?cinema_id=37829) • [2](https://asianwiki.com/index.php?title=Death_Note%3A_The_Last_Name) It continues the battle of wits between the student [Light Yagami](https://www.edgepedia.org/light-yagami), who kills with a supernatural notebook, and the detective L, and it ends the story with an outcome that differs from the manga.[3](https://www.wowow.co.jp/detail/022257)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Japanese release | November 3, 2006; 140 minutes; distributed by Warner[1](https://www.kinenote.com/main/public/cinema/detail.aspx?cinema_id=37829) |
| Director and writers | Directed by Shusuke Kaneko; screenplay by Tetsuya Oishi and Kaneko, from the manga by Tsugumi Ohba and Takeshi Obata[1](https://www.kinenote.com/main/public/cinema/detail.aspx?cinema_id=37829) • [4](https://jfdb.jp/en/title/489) |
| Lead cast | Tatsuya Fujiwara as Light Yagami, Kenichi Matsuyama as L, Erika Toda as Misa Amane[5](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0810827/) |
| Worldwide gross | $47,919,757, the highest-grossing film of the live-action Death Note franchise[6](https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt0810827%26lang%3Den/) • [7](https://filmdb.co.uk/box-office/franchise/death-note) |
| Budget | $17.0 million per FilmDB; IMDb lists an estimated $20 million[7](https://filmdb.co.uk/box-office/franchise/death-note) • [5](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0810827/) |
| Reception | IMDb 7.1/10 from about 19,000 users; Rotten Tomatoes 80% from critics and 83% from audiences[5](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0810827/) • [8](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/death_note_the_last_name) |
| Franchise position | Second of four Japanese live-action films, followed by *L: Change the WorLd* (2008) and *Death Note: Light Up the NEW World* (2016)[9](https://whichott.com/us/movie/death-note-the-last-name-2006-16140) |
## Spoilers
### Story
The film picks up directly after the first *Death Note* (2006). Light Yagami, a student who uses the [Death Note](https://www.edgepedia.org/death-note), a notebook that kills anyone whose name is written in it, to purge criminals under the alias Kira, meets a second Kira: the television idol [Misa Amane](https://www.edgepedia.org/misa-amane), a devoted follower who possesses a second Death Note and is accompanied by the [Shinigami](https://www.edgepedia.org/shinigami) (god of death) Rem.[10](https://www.justwatch.com/us/movie/desu-noto-the-last-name) • [3](https://www.wowow.co.jp/detail/022257) Light joins the police task force hunting Kira to deflect suspicion from himself and to eliminate L.[6](https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt0810827%26lang%3Den/)
A second notebook falling into other hands complicates the plot: according to the KINENOTE synopsis, Kiyomi Takada, a caster on the sensationalist Sakura TV, obtains the Death Note Misa abandons and becomes a "third Kira".[1](https://www.kinenote.com/main/public/cinema/detail.aspx?cinema_id=37829) The film's climax resolves the Light–L contest in a way the source manga does not: L triumphs over Light by sacrificing his own life to expose him.[8](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/death_note_the_last_name) The WOWOW program notes describe this altered ending as one of the film's principal attractions, alongside the arrival of the second notebook.[3](https://www.wowow.co.jp/detail/022257)
### Place in the franchise
*Death Note: The Last Name* closes the two-part arc that adapts the Kira-versus-L story; the later Japanese films extend the same live-action universe rather than retelling it. *L: Change the WorLd* (2008) is a spin-off centered on L, and *Death Note: Light Up the NEW World* (2016) is a sequel set years afterward, making a four-film Japanese collection.[9](https://whichott.com/us/movie/death-note-the-last-name-2006-16140) The film screened internationally at festivals such as the 2007 New Zealand International Film Festival, which paired the two parts and described them as a satisfying pair of serialized fantasy films.[13](https://www.nziff.co.nz/2007/archive/death-note-death-note-the-last-name/) As of late 2026 it is not streaming in the United States, though it is available in 18 other countries on services including Netflix (Japan and South Korea), Prime Video (Japan and Spain), and the Apple TV store in 16 countries.[10](https://www.justwatch.com/us/movie/desu-noto-the-last-name) • [14](https://www.netflixmovies.com/death-note-the-last-name-2006)
## Production
The manga ran in the magazine *Weekly Shonen Jump*, and Kaneko directed the story as two theatrical parts.[4](https://jfdb.jp/en/title/489) Production companies included Shueisha, Horipro, Yomiuri Telecasting (YTV), VAP, Konami, Shochiku, and Nikkatsu, with Warner as distributor.[1](https://www.kinenote.com/main/public/cinema/detail.aspx?cinema_id=37829) • [4](https://jfdb.jp/en/title/489) Kenji Kawai composed the music, and the [Red Hot Chili Peppers](https://www.edgepedia.org/red-hot-chili-peppers), who had become fans of the original comic, provided the theme music for both parts; the soundtrack includes their song "Snow (Hey Oh)".[4](https://jfdb.jp/en/title/489) • [5](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0810827/)
The film is dedicated to the memory of Hiroshi Takase, the director of photography on the first *Death Note* movie, who died just after finishing it.[5](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0810827/)
## Box office
The film earned $47,919,757 worldwide, essentially all of it in the Asia-Pacific region, against a reported budget of $17.0 million, a gross-to-budget multiple of 2.82x.[6](https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt0810827%26lang%3Den/) • [7](https://filmdb.co.uk/box-office/franchise/death-note) Japan accounted for $41,171,082 of the total, followed by South Korea ($3,307,434), Hong Kong ($1,837,633), Taiwan ($591,416), Thailand ($579,658), and Malaysia ($428,294); a 2008 re-release in the United Kingdom added $2,120.[6](https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt0810827%26lang%3Den/) The earliest release recorded by [Box Office Mojo](https://www.edgepedia.org/box-office-mojo) was November 2, 2006 in Hong Kong, one day before the Japanese opening.[6](https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt0810827%26lang%3Den/)
Within the franchise, it was the highest-grossing entry: the first *Death Note* earned $29.7 million and the 2008 spin-off *L: Change the WorLd* $30.2 million, for a three-film total of $107.8 million.[7](https://filmdb.co.uk/box-office/franchise/death-note) The Japanese program notes state that the two-part *Death Note* story together earned roughly 8 billion yen at the box office.[3](https://www.wowow.co.jp/detail/022257)
## Reception
Critical and audience scores were favorable. Rotten Tomatoes recorded 80% from five critics and 83% from more than 10,000 audience ratings; IMDb shows 7.1/10 from about 19,000 users.[8](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/death_note_the_last_name) • [5](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0810827/) The Film Index aggregate gave the film a score of 64, combining IMDb (7.2/10 from 18,411 ratings at its crawl date), Rotten Tomatoes, AlloCiné, Filmweb, and Kinopoisk data.[11](https://moviesranking.com/film/tt0810827-death-note-the-last-name-2006) Reviewers singled out the changed ending: audience commentary on Rotten Tomatoes repeatedly praises the conclusion, in which L wins, as better than the manga and anime versions, while noting the film's fast pacing and a Light who reads as older than a college student.[8](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/death_note_the_last_name) A Japanese blog review of the film at release judged that the ending, an idea absent from the original manga, gave the character of L a depth the manga lacked.[12](https://simokitazawa.hatenablog.com/entry/20061124/p2)
## References
1. [ＤＥＡＴＨ ＮＯＴＥ デスノート ｔｈｅ Ｌａｓｔ ｎａｍｅ, KINENOTE](https://www.kinenote.com/main/public/cinema/detail.aspx?cinema_id=37829)
2. [Death Note: The Last Name, AsianWiki](https://asianwiki.com/index.php?title=Death_Note%3A_The_Last_Name)
3. [DEATH NOTE the Last name, WOWOW Online](https://www.wowow.co.jp/detail/022257)
4. [Death Note the Last Name, Japanese Film Database (JFDB)](https://jfdb.jp/en/title/489)
5. [Death Note: The Last Name (2006), IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0810827/)
6. [Death Note: The Last Name (2006), Box Office Mojo](https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt0810827%26lang%3Den/)
7. [Death Note franchise box office profile, FilmDB](https://filmdb.co.uk/box-office/franchise/death-note)
8. [Death Note 2: The Last Name, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/death_note_the_last_name)
9. [Where to watch Death Note: The Last Name in United States, WhichOTT](https://whichott.com/us/movie/death-note-the-last-name-2006-16140)
10. [Death Note: The Last Name streaming, JustWatch](https://www.justwatch.com/us/movie/desu-noto-the-last-name)
11. [Death Note: The Last Name (2006), The Film Index](https://moviesranking.com/film/tt0810827-death-note-the-last-name-2006)
12. [「DEATH NOTE デスノート the Last name」（金子修介監督）, 下北沢通信](https://simokitazawa.hatenablog.com/entry/20061124/p2)
13. [Death Note + Death Note: The Last Name, New Zealand International Film Festival 2007](https://www.nziff.co.nz/2007/archive/death-note-death-note-the-last-name/)
14. [Death Note: The Last Name (2006) on Netflix, NetflixMovies.com](https://www.netflixmovies.com/death-note-the-last-name-2006)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Films and standalone screen works › Individual films by title and year › Franchise and series entries as standalone works › Action, thriller, and crime series film entries › Entries released in the 2000s › Released 2005 to 2009*
*Initially written Oct 3, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license