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Akira (planned film)

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Akira
Screenplay by
Based onAkira
by Katsuhiro Otomo
Produced by
Production
companies
Distributed byWarner Bros. Pictures
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

Akira is a proposed American cyberpunk action film based on the Japanese manga of the same name by Katsuhiro Otomo, and was set to be the second film adaptation following the 1988 anime version. The film was written by Taika Waititi and Michael Golamco.

Warner Bros. Pictures, which had held the rights to a live-action version adaptation of the manga since 2002, has repeatedly struggled to get production off the ground over various concerns, leaving the project in development hell. In 2017, Waititi was announced to direct and co-write, with production to start in 2019, and scheduled for release in 2021. However, just prior to production, Waititi left the project to direct Thor: Love and Thunder (2022), delaying the project indefinitely. In April 2023, Waititi stated that he aims to begin working on the film again after completing his upcoming Star Wars film.

Premise

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A secret military project endangers Neo-Tokyo when it turns a biker gang member into a rampaging psychic psychopath that only two teenagers and a group of psychics can stop.[1]

Production

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Earlier attempts

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In the 1990s, following the release of the 1988 anime film, Sony Pictures Entertainment obtained the rights to the Akira manga series with the intent of creating a live-action adaptation. This project was ultimately cancelled due to budgetary concerns.[2]

In 2002, Warner Bros. acquired the rights to create a live-action remake of Akira as a seven-figure deal.[3][4] However, the project has undergone a troubled development,[5] with at least five different directors and ten different writers attached over more than two decades of pre-production.[6][7] IGN concluded that long-term troubles with producing the live-action film primarily came from two areas. Firstly, there has been the fear of whitewashing or racebending, casting American or other Western actors in lieu of Japanese ones, which has frequently come to light when such actors have been reported as under consideration for these roles. Secondly, Akira itself is not considered a story that is easy to relocate outside of Japan, due to the heavy influence on the original story of Japan's role in World War II, including the atomic bombings of Japan, and their own Unit 731.[6] Attempts to make it more Westernized in order to draw American audiences, such as using the September 11 attacks as part of the establishing events instead of the atomic bombings, required fundamental changes to the story, which has subsequently drawn much criticism.[8]

Shortly after Warner Bros. acquired the rights, Stephen Norrington was slated to direct with James Robinson writing the screenplay and Dan Lin producing.[6][9] Planned changes included setting the film in Chicago, as well as making Kaneda and Tetsuo brothers. However, following the commercial failure of The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen in 2003 (which both Norrington and Robinson also collaborated on), the project was put on hold.[6]

Director Ruairí Robinson was hired in 2006, planning to split Akira across two films,[2] with the first to be completed and released by 2009. Producer Andrew Lazar specified that the two movies would each cover three volumes of the six-volume manga.[10] Writer Gary Whitta had been told that Otomo had instructed those working on the film "basically to not be afraid to change things, that he wanted to see an original and different interpretation, not just a straight-up remake".[6] Whitta's take on the story would have re-centered the story to New York: after the destructive Akira incident destroys Manhattan, the US economy nearly collapses. Out of desperation, the government leases the now-vacant land to Japan, which has become an economic powerhouse and is struggling with overpopulation; this city of Japanese citizens built on formerly American land becomes New Tokyo.[2] This would have allowed them to have used a mixture of Western and Asian cultures and actors so as to avoid concerns that they would be whitewashing the project.[6][11]

Robinson left the project in 2009, replaced as director by Albert Hughes. They used Whitta's script, with additional rewrites by Mark Fergus and Hawk Ostby, Albert Torres, and Steve Kloves, with plans to aim for a PG-13 rating for the two-part film.[2][6] In 2011, versions of the Akira script began to surface online. In February, selections from a older draft of the screenplay were sent to casting agencies and circulated online, providing glimpses at changes the adaptation was making: the setting of Neo-Manhattan rather than Neo Tokyo, Kaneda and Tetsuo as siblings rather than friends, and an increased focus on the gang's use and trafficking of drugs.[12] A full script, from a different draft than the casting sheets, leaked online later that year; though it was unclear precisely which screenwriter(s) had produced it, the scripts were criticized for deviating significantly from the source material: siblings Kaneda and Tetsuo were now in their early 30s and no longer bikers, Akira was a murderous evil child comparable to a horror villain, and Kei's supporting role was downplayed to a simpler love interest. The American setting also drew criticism for its heavy-handed references to the September 11 attacks and whitewashing in the casting calls (particularly with the renaming of Tetsuo to "Travis").[6][13] Shortly after these events, Hughes left the project, citing "amicable creative differences".[6]

In July 2011, Jaume Collet-Serra was hired to direct, with Steve Kloves providing revision work on a draft by screenwriter Albert Torres.[14] By this point, the budget had been drastically reduced to a third of its initial budget.[2] The film was greenlit in October 2011, with filming eyed to begin by February or March 2012.[15] In January 2012, as production was gearing up to begin in Vancouver, Warner Bros. halted production, citing issues with casting, the script and the budget.[16] Collet-Serra would depart the film during this time, but would return in August 2013.[17] He detailed his vision for the film in February 2014, stating that it would be respectful of the source material, but would still have differences.[18][19] New drafts of the screenplay were completed by Dante Harper in 2014[20] and Marco Ramirez in July 2015.[21] By 2017, Collett-Serra was no longer attached to the project.[6]

During this interim period, Warner Bros. sought new directors to take over the film. George Miller was offered the chance to direct the film, but he turned it down due to commitments to other projects.[22] The studio was also reported to have been in talks with Justin Lin to direct the film.[23] Jordan Peele was offered the chance to direct, but declined.[24]

In a June 2017 interview, Otomo said that he was "basically done with Akira" as a manga, and that "if someone wants to do something new with Akira then I am mostly okay with that", on the condition that he be allowed to review and approve of any approach a writer might take with a live-action adaptation.[25]

Development

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In September 2017, it was announced that director Taika Waititi was in talks to direct.[4] He expressed an intention to adapt the original six-volume manga, rather than directly remaking the anime film.[26][27] In May 2019, Waititi was officially confirmed to direct the film, and would be co-writing the script with Michael Golamco, with a release date of May 21, 2021.[28][1] Filming was scheduled to have commenced in California in July 2019.[29]

However, Waititi was announced to direct Thor: Love and Thunder on July 16, 2019 – Akira was once again put on hold, with Waititi's continued connection to the project uncertain.[30] Warner Bros. ultimately removed Akira from its release schedule by December 2019, filling its May 2021 release window with The Matrix Resurrections.[31] Waititi reaffirmed his post-Thor commitment to Akira in 2019[32] and 2021.[33] Though Waititi has been announced to write and direct an upcoming Star Wars film,[34] reports have suggested that Akira may be developed before this Star Wars film.[35][36]

As of late 2023, Waititi was focused on production of Klara and the Sun but acknowledged that Akira was still in his "backlog" of projects. Charles Yu is now attached as writer.[27]

Casting

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Concept art for Robinson's 2008 production featured Chris Evans as Kaneda against Joseph Gordon-Levitt as Travis (Tetsuo), though it is unclear if either actor was actually attached to the project.[2]

In 2011, the casting process began in earnest. Actors considered for Kaneda included James Franco, Robert Pattinson, and Keanu Reeves;[37] Garrett Hedlund emerged as the frontrunner for the role and began negotiations in November.[38] Tetsuo was not cast before the production halted; Paul Dano, Alden Ehrenreich, and Toby Kebbell were among those screen tested.[39] Kristen Stewart was offered the role of Ky Reed (Kei) shortly after Hedlund was cast.[39][40] Gary Oldman was offered the role of the Colonel[41] but passed on the project, the role was then offered to Ken Watanabe.[42] Helena Bonham Carter [41] and Keira Knightley[43] were approached for unspecified roles.

For his production, Waititi has asserted an intention to cast Asian-American teenagers to play the leads to avoid concerns over whitewashing, and preferred lesser-known actors for the roles.[26]

References

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  1. ^ a b D'Alessandro, Anthony (May 24, 2019). "Taika Waititi's 'Akira' Will Take Off In Summer 2021". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved May 24, 2019.
  2. ^ a b c d e f Falk, Ben (March 21, 2017). "Akira: The long and tortured history of the live-action remake". Yahoo! News. Retrieved April 25, 2020.
  3. ^ Linder, Brian et al. (12 April 2002). "Akira Hollywood Remake!?" IGN.com. Retrieved 24 October 2006. Archived 13 March 2010 at the Wayback Machine
  4. ^ a b Busch, Anita; Flemming, Mike (September 19, 2017). "'Akira' Back? 'Thor: Ragnarok' Helmer Taika Waititi In Talks". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on September 25, 2017. Retrieved September 25, 2017.
  5. ^ Gramuglia, Anthony (April 14, 2019). "Akira: The Long, Exhausting History of Hollywood's Live-Action Movie". Comic Book Resources. Retrieved August 19, 2019.
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Marc, Christopher (April 6, 2017). "Akira: The Tortured History of the Unmade Live-Action Adaptation". IGN. Archived from the original on September 1, 2017. Retrieved August 31, 2017.
  7. ^ Kit, Borys (January 5, 2012). "'Akira' Production Offices Shut Down As Warner Bros. Scrutinizes Budget (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on March 16, 2014.
  8. ^ Joest, Mick (August 2, 2019). "Why Does The Akira Movie Keep Running Into Production Problems?". CinemaBlend. Retrieved August 6, 2019.
  9. ^ Linder, Brian (April 12, 2002). "Akira Hollywood Remake!?". Archived from the original on March 29, 2019. Retrieved February 7, 2019.
  10. ^ Steve 'Frosty' Weintraub. "Exclusive: Producer Andrew Lazar Video Interview JONAH HEX; Plus Updates on AKIRA, ONE FINGER SALUTE, GET SMART 2, More". Collider.com. Archived from the original on June 19, 2010. Retrieved June 18, 2010.
  11. ^ "Screenwriter Gary Whitta Says His AKIRA Script Took Place in a Japanese-owned Manhattan". Collider.com. May 28, 2013. Archived from the original on June 7, 2013. Retrieved May 29, 2013.
  12. ^ Newitz, Annalee (February 28, 2011). "Early script pages reveal what's happening with the American Akira". Gizmodo. Retrieved July 29, 2024.
  13. ^ Brockway, Robert (April 7, 2011). "The Actual Live-Action Akira Script: Worse Than You Think". Cracked.com. Retrieved July 29, 2024.
  14. ^ Sneider, Jeff (July 14, 2011). "Warner Bros. taps 'Unknown' director for 'Akira'".
  15. ^ Kroll, Justin (October 20, 2011). "Warners greenlights 'Akira'; Hedlund front-runner".
  16. ^ Kit, Borys (January 5, 2012). "'Akira' Production Offices Shut Down As Warner Bros. Scrutinizes Budget (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter.
  17. ^ Kroll, Justin (August 2, 2013). "Jaume Collet-Serra Returns to Direct 'Akira' (EXCLUSIVE)".
  18. ^ Han, Angie (February 10, 2014). "Jaume Collet-Serra's 'Akira' Won't Be Too Faithful To The Source Material". SlashFilm.
  19. ^ "Director Collet-Serra Hopes Live-Action Akira Will Be His Next Work". News. Anime News Network. February 10, 2014. Retrieved February 10, 2020.
  20. ^ Fleming, Mike Jr. (July 14, 2014). "Dante Harper Boards Fox 2000s 'The Secret Of The Temple'". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on July 15, 2014. Retrieved July 14, 2014.
  21. ^ Sneider, Jeff (June 9, 2015). "'Daredevil' Showrunner to Resurrect 'Akira' Movie at Warner Bros".
  22. ^ Bulter, Tom (October 6, 2015). "George Miller Turned Down The Live Action Akira Remake (Exclusive)". Yahoo UK. Archived from the original on October 7, 2015. Retrieved October 6, 2015.
  23. ^ Popcorn Talk. "Akira with Justin Lin?, Sister Act 3, The Rock as the Wolfman & More – Meet The Movie Press". Archived from the original on June 16, 2017. Retrieved June 24, 2016 – via YouTube.
  24. ^ Chitwood, Adam (May 16, 2017). "Jordan Peele Explains Why He Won't Be Directing 'Akira'". Collider. Archived from the original on January 31, 2018. Retrieved January 30, 2018.
  25. ^ Anderson, Kyle (June 1, 2017). "Akira creator says he must approve any live-action film". The Nerdist. Archived from the original on January 31, 2018. Retrieved January 30, 2018.
  26. ^ a b Sharf, Zack (October 11, 2017). "Taika Waititi Teases 'Akira' Film Adaptation, Says No One Has to Worry About Whitewashing". Indiewire. Archived from the original on January 31, 2018. Retrieved January 30, 2018.
  27. ^ a b "Taika Waititi Confirms He's Not Directing 'Thor 5' — But Chris Hemsworth is in Talks for Return". Inverse. November 14, 2023. Retrieved July 29, 2024.
  28. ^ Couch, Aaron (May 24, 2019). "Taika Waititi's 'Akira' Sets 2021 Release Date". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved May 24, 2019.
  29. ^ Patton, Dominic (April 2, 2019). "Leonardo DiCaprio Produced 'Akira' Scores In Latest CA Tax Credits Allocation". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on April 2, 2019. Retrieved April 2, 2019.
  30. ^ Kit, Borys (July 16, 2019). "Taika Waititi to Direct 'Thor 4' (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on July 16, 2019. Retrieved July 16, 2019.
  31. ^ Hipes, Patrick (December 11, 2019). "Warner Bros Sets Release Dates For 'The Matrix' Sequel, 'The Flash' & More; 'Akira' Off Schedule". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved December 11, 2019.
  32. ^ Schedeen, Jesse (October 18, 2019). "Akira: Taika Waititi Still Directing Live-Action Anime Movie After Thor 4". IGN. Retrieved October 18, 2019.
  33. ^ Kelly, Stephen (August 11, 2021). "Taika Waititi talks Free Guy, Star Wars and Thor". Wired UK. Retrieved July 26, 2022.
  34. ^ "Academy Award Winner Taika Waititi to Direct and Co-Write new Star Wars Feature Film for Theatrical Release; Oscar Nominee Krysty Wilson-Cairns to Co-Write Screenplay with Waititi". StarWars.com. Retrieved July 29, 2024.
  35. ^ "Akira Live-Action Movie Reportedly Moving Forward with Taika Waititi". comicbook.com. Retrieved April 12, 2023.
  36. ^ Phillips, Terry (April 10, 2023). "Taika Waititi's Akira Movie Reportedly Gets Surprising Development Update". ScreenRant. Retrieved April 16, 2023.
  37. ^ Kit, Borys (May 6, 2011). "Keanu Reeves Circling Warner Bros.' Akira (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter.
  38. ^ Kroll, Justin (November 3, 2011). "Garrett Hedlund in talks for Warners' 'Akira'".
  39. ^ a b Kit, Borys (November 18, 2011). "Casting Couch: Hot Actors Testing for Key 'Akira' Role". The Hollywood Reporter.
  40. ^ Kit, Borys (November 15, 2011). "Kristen Stewart Has an Offer to Star in 'Akira,' Will She Accept?". The Hollywood Reporter.
  41. ^ a b Han, Angie (October 24, 2011). "Helena Bonham Carter And Gary Oldman Could Be In 'Akira'". SlashFilm.
  42. ^ Han, Angie (November 23, 2011). "Gary Oldman Won't Be In 'Akira', Ken Watanabe Offered Colonel Role Instead". SlashFilm.
  43. ^ Han, Angie (November 5, 2011). "Casting Bits: Keira Knightley Approached For 'Akira', Gary Oldman Wanted For 'Arthur & Lancelot', Holly Hunter And Elisabeth Moss In Jane Campion Miniseries". SlashFilm.
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