Akira: The Movie. Again!

Akira is one of those comic books, like Watchmen, that totally revolutionised the medium when it was published in the early 1980s. The animated movie, released a few years later, was the breakthrough Manga movie that introduced Western fans to the rich, exotic, and frequently weird culture of Japanese animation.

Now, 25 years later, Warner Brothers have announced a live-action take on the still highly regarded tale of futuristic motorcycle gangs, psychic supermen, and baby universes.  A three movie series is planned at this stage, with at least the first instalment directed by Ruairi Robinson and scripted by Gary Whitta . Both are comparatively unknown quantities, although Robinson’s sci-fi short The Silent City certainly boasted plenty of the barren post-apocalyptic atmosphere  you might hope for in the latter stages of the Akira saga.

There's some suggestion that Leonardo DiCaprio will be appearing as the teenage protagonist Shotaro Kaneda, although  that seems the least likely element of the report. It seems to be based on the involvement of DiCaprio's production company rather than any official announcement so far. Purists will probably be more outraged by the ‘future New York’ setting of the forthcoming movie rather than the ‘future Tokyo’ of the original Manga, but as long as they can get that big red motorcycle right, it’ll probably still be worth a look. The first movie in the trilogy is due in 2009.

Comments

[sam]

why cant they just make a live action version of the manga instead of rehashing it to take place in "new manhattan"

[This sucks]

A westernized ver. of one of the best animes is bound to suck.