The story is primarily based on Shūgorō Yamamoto's short story . Originally Sanjuro was to be a straight adaptation of the story. After the success of Yojimbo the studio decided to resurrect its popular antihero, and Kurosawa reimagined the script accordingly. But despite a certain element of continuity, the eventual film turned out to be more than just a sequel to Yojimbo for the hero goes on to develop in character from the swashbuckling original.
