Leonardo DiCaprio’s company Appian Way Productions has got the go ahead to bring Japanese Anime sensation “Akira” to Hollywood. Warner Bros. has hopped on board to make Akira into a franchise series with two films set for summer 2009 release.
This is an extremely ambitious undertaking for such a noteworthy Anime series. I get the shivers just thinking about any Anime series going Hollywood. But to see Akira, the legend, go Hollywood makes me quiver with fear that it will be ruined by the Hollywood juggernaut. Anime/Manga just doesn’t translate well to the broad-based American audience.
Pop society never really caught onto the whole “serious” Anime craze (meaning NOT-POKEMON).
Oddly enough, a n00b has been earmarked to helm the film. First-time filmmaker Ruairi Robinson has been brought on board after his work on the sci-fi CG comedy “Fifty Percent Grey.”
Check out the clip:
Now granted, this is a great clip. The short was nominated for an Oscar, won Best Short Animated Film at the London Effects and Animation festival and was shown in the Sundance Film Festival.
But, Akira is a feature-film. And, hey… it’s AKIRA. How can they expect to just knock-out two films by next summer? Hollywood dollars does not a good movie make.
Already, they’ve decided to set the film in New York City instead of Tokyo. Hopefully, this doesn’t become Ben Affleck in Daredevil followed by Jennifer Garner in Elektra. Talk about bad.
The original Akira was directed by Katsuhiro Otomo and was based on the graphic novels (manga) by Otomo. If you haven’t seen it, check it out.
About Akira:
Childhood friends Tetsuo and Kaneda’s motorcycle gang encounters a military operation to retrieve an escaped experimental subject. The military captures Tetsuo and conducts experiments on him that unleash his latent psychic ability, but when these new powers rage out of control, Tetsuo lashes out at the world that has oppressed him.
i really want to see it. I can’t see how they’d sell the rights to Akira without having creative input. but if it ends up like spawn did when it was a feature film, then i’ll be really upset.
Originality is long dead in Hollywood. It’s all about recycling and interpreting old stories now.
Does Hollywood have the intention destroying everything that is perfect as it is? Akira MUST be left alone, why oh why don’t they try to come with something original for a change!
Why can’t they get Christopher Nolan to direct this?
THEY MIGHT AS WELL CALL THIS POKE-AKIRA. IT’S NOT EVEN IN JAPAN. EVEN THE FAST AND THE FURIOUS HAD A BUDGET TO SHOOT IN JAPAN. WHY CAN’T AKIRA???
What? Dicaprio is producing Akira? this is terrible. He’s a pretty boy hollywood sap who doesn’t know the first thing about anime. I don’t even have to know him, i know his type. this is stupid.