Sci-Fi WB creating live-action Akira - Part 1

[TheVileOne]

I’ve already explained that I don’t think they meant “names” as in box office draws (celebs like that don’t really exist anymore). More that they wanted recognizable faces or existing talent rather than first timers.

I don’t see the logic in WB wanting white actors for this when they just launched a huge, all Asian franchise.

What makes Remy Hii recognizable?

 

[Da-Scribe]

What makes Remy Hii recognizable?

He was in Crazy Rich Asians and Far From Home. It’s just an example though. I also mentioned Ludi Lin who has similarly passed for a high schooler and is easily more recognizable than Remy.

 

[TheVileOne]

Also Crazy Rich Asians had a budget of $30 million. That's about a fraction of what AKIRA would likely cost.

 

[Da-Scribe]

Also Crazy Rich Asians had a budget of $30 million. That's about a fraction of what AKIRA would likely cost.

Okay?

 

[HammerDown]

So i guess Taika is still somewhat attached since it was apparently pushed back to after Thor 4.
According to this info i'd say 2022 could be the year for filming which would put the release date around 2023.

 

[Lencho01]

Uh Maybe Don’t Hold Your Breath For That Live-Action AKIRA Movie

 

[TheVileOne]

So what else is new?

 

[Pennywise]

This is surprising, but I doubt the film will get off the ground still.

 

[HammerDown]

That’s surprising and interesting. If that would be the case, my first thought was that his SW film has also been shelved/indefinitely postponed which wouldn’t be terribly unexpected since the SW people seem very adverse to risk and any hints of a lukewarm reception is more than enough for them to abandon projects all together.

 

[Filmfreak]

He also has been developing Jodorowski's Incal. I don't think all these projects will be made.

 

[Still Wynning]

You know, I’m still kind of down for this.

Despite my disappointment in T:L&T, I chalk that up to being more of a fun little side gig he wanted to do with his buddies. And, of course, Disney and Marvel Studios being them. It shouldn’t have been that, of course, but it is what it is.

In all of the interviews I’ve seen of him talking about Akira, he’s mentioned how much of a passion project it is for him and how much he wants to do right by it. The man has clearly shown in a lot of his other projects that he is a very diverse filmmaker and can create some truly wonderful stuff when he really wants to. I really think that if he wants to make it the best that it can be, and if he’s allowed to, I think he can do it.

Also, he said that he’s going to adapt the manga and not the original animated film. The former is so different and has so many other characters, story points and subplots that weren’t in the 1988 film that it might as well be its own thing, and it wouldn’t encroach on the legacy of the latter.

Either way, however this goes, I’m still keeping an open mind about this.

 

[HammerDown]

He also has been developing Jodorowski's Incal. I don't think all these projects will be made.

In order of probability, Akira he was already involved with that for a long time so if Disney doesn’t wanna throw him a big bone, then WB would gladly try and bringing him in to the fold as they’ve tried to in the past. The Incal stuff is still a bit of a mistery but I would actually say that of all of these projects it’s probably the one that lines up best with the wildest side of his filmmaking. That project will be a massive swing of the bat for whoever decides to tackle it. At this point I think SW is probably the most unlikely to happen.

You know, I’m still kind of down for this.

Despite my disappointment in T:L&T, I chalk that up to being more of a fun little side gig he wanted to do with his buddies. And, of course, Disney and Marvel Studios being them. It shouldn’t have been that, of course, but it is what it is.

In all of the interviews I’ve seen of him talking about Akira, he’s mentioned how much of a passion project it is for him and how much he wants to do right by it. The man has clearly shown in a lot of his other projects that he is a very diverse filmmaker and can create some truly wonderful stuff when he really wants to. I really think that if he wants to make it the best that it can be, and if he’s allowed to, I think he can do it.

Also, he said that he’s going to adapt the manga and not the original animated film. The former is so different and has so many other characters, story points and subplots that weren’t in the 1988 film that it might as well be its own thing, and it wouldn’t encroach on the legacy of the latter.

Either way, however this goes, I’m still keeping an open mind about this.

Yeh I’m also still very much interested to see a Taika helmed Akira. The film was pretty wild and I’m not familiar with the manga but I see stuff in that project that Taika could explore well with some of his sensibilities, even though I’m still a bit unsure if his head and focus is on the right place at this moment in time.

 

[Stringer]

I don't think he's right for it, but who knows.

 

[Joe Von Zombie]

Just ****ing stop already.

 

[TheVileOne]

I simply can't trust Hollywood to adapt Akira properly.

 

[Da-Scribe]

I just don’t know about this under Taika. Has nothing to do with L&T either. I just don’t see much in his style that feels like Akira. But creative people are creative and I may end up becoming my totally wrong. Wouldn’t that be nice?

 

[TheVileOne]

I'm just not going to be able to accept any changes made to the source material followed by think pieces defending why these changes are "better" or why such and such was never good in the first place.

 

[SwordOfMorning]

Taika is such a bizarre, ill-fitting choice for this that if there needs to be an Akira adaptation his version would at least be interesting because I have no concept of what it would look like. His movies are wildly hit and miss for me but, I dunno, if he tapped into some of the more serious subtext of his smaller movies there could be something there...

 

[Pennywise]

Will the update be that it’s shelved again?

 

[batman44]

 

[Still Wynning]

View attachment 130186



Will the update be that it’s shelved again?

You know, I think with the way the world is going right now and things seemingly going to pot, I think a lot of us are primed and ready for a sci-fi bending, political satirizing, societal critiquing, apocalyptic/post-apocalyptic/post post-apocalyptic/post post post-apocalyptic genre film, and it just might be what the doctor ordered.

In times of great crises, certain things at the right moment can just really resonate and hit. If done right, this could be one of those things.

 

[Pennywise]

I’d be surprised if Waititi is still involved, the guy has so many projects still, and is acting in a couple of upcoming films.

 

[TheVileOne]

Ugh, but why?

 

[Still Wynning]

I’d be surprised if Waititi is still involved, the guy has so many projects still, and is acting in a couple of upcoming films.

Yeah, a few years ago, he would’ve been good because he was still pretty popular, but since he’s been out of the spotlight for so long, I think the shine on him has passed.

Whoever they get for this should be able to walk the line between having both blockbuster and indie film sensibilities, and be a big fan of the source material, but not be too precious and understand enough to know what and when to change things for the adaptation and inject a bit of themselves and their own style into it. A24 type of style, but with a slightly bigger budget.

As far as choices go, here are the some names I thought of off the top of my head:

Spoiler: Director Ideas

Jordan Peele— He’s a proven filmmaker and very good at using things in this film to represent and comment on real-life subjects and issues. I know at one point he was considered and then left it, but maybe he could come back? Also, he threw the Akira slide into “Nope”, so he’s definitely a big fan.

The Daniels— These guys have a very interesting and quirky yet unique style an interesting way of delivering a narrative and telling a story, but are also really good at navigating the madness and really honing in on their characters and motivations. The only downside of this is that they haven’t really done a super huge big budget yet, and I’m worried that they wouldn’t have as much pull in the creative process and get dragged and pushed around a lot.

Tony Gilroy— This guy has pretty much mastered the art of taking something that he’s not necessarily a fan of, finding a vision and helping craft something truly special and engaging. Andor, which he spearheaded, has political and social commentary and intrigue, it has sci-fi, it has action, it has drama, it has romance, it has moments of levity and humor, it has espionage, it has rebellion and insurgency. I go back-and-forth on this and Denis Villeneuve probably for my #1 choice. The question is whether he would want to do another big franchise thing.

Lee Isaac Chung— Directed Minari, a smaller, independent film, and Twisters, a big budget blockbuster, which, while it didn’t make a huge amount of money, it was still popular enough to get a sequel greenlit. He can do the big kind of bombastic franchise stuff, but also do the more smaller scale, intimate stuff. Also, he’s a big anime fan, and, at one point, he was attached to direct a live-action adaptation of “your name.”, but he couldn’t figure out how to translate a lot of the Japanese aspects of the story for an American audience, so that fell through. Maybe he could find a way in with this?

Gareth Edwards— I mean, visually, his work speaks itself. He is great at capturing scale, and he knows how to get the most out of a smaller budget. The thing is that he needs a really strong script to work with, which is what is happening with original Jurassic Park screenwriter David Koepp returning to the franchise to pen Jurassic World: Rebirth. Let’s hope that pans out. Also, a huge fan of “Akira”, which inspired a lot of the themes and the aesthetic of everything in “The Creator”, the last film that he did.

Denis Villeneuve— He successfully adapted what was thought to be one of the most insurmountable, unadaptable and most famous popular works of fiction in our cultural lexicon ever written into two really excellent films which made over $1 billion total at the box office. If he could do that, Akira would practically be a cakewalk for him.

 

[DorkyFresh]

Takashi Yamazaki (Godzilla Minus One) or bust.