News

Producer Andrew Lazar has been working on getting a live-action Akira film off the ground for some 20 years now.

Filmmakers have come and gone, but the project has been quiet for several years. In a recent interview, Moovy TV asked Lazar for an update.

“There’s no update, but I expect we’ll have one in the next couple of months,” Lazar says. “So I think you can expect an update in the next couple of months.”

Not much, but we’ll take it!

Lazar is producing under his Mad Chance Productions along with Leonardo DiCaprio and Jennifer Davisson via their Appian Way Productions. Warner Bros. will distribute.

Taika Waititi was the most recent director attached, although it’s unclear if he’s still on board.

The influential 1998 anime is directed by Katsuhiro Otomo from a script he co-wrote with Izo Hashimoto, based on Otomo’s 1982 manga of the same name.

Unbelievably, it has now been almost a quarter of a century since a live-action adaptation of the 1988 cult smash-hit Akira first entered development hell for a ridiculously long time. While we haven’t heard much about the highly anticipated anime adaptation, that’s all about to change, as Academy Award-nominated producer Andrew Lazar has now teased some promising, and imminent, news.

Ever since being announced back in 2002, the new take on Akira has been passed around to several filmmakers, with the most recent being Oscar winner and Thor: Ragnarok director Taika Waititi. Now, Lazar, who is best known for the likes of American Sniper and this month’s action movie G20, has revealed (via Johan Albrechtsen of Moovy TV) that, while he can’t say anything yet, he expects there will be some big news coming "in the next couple of months.”

“So, I think you can expect an update...

Goku's first time becoming a Super Saiyan is easily one of the most iconic transformations in all of anime. Goku's guttural outburst of rage after seeing his friend Krillin killed at the hands of Frieza always sends chills down the spines of any Dragon Ball fan. Everything from the shots, the effects, and the dialogue are all instantly recognizable to viewers, from hardcore anime lovers to the general watcher. But as memorable as the scene is, it's not the first time an anime character has undergone a major transformation.

Plenty of anime from the 70s and 80s have characters undergoing iconic transformations in their own right. Like the Super Saiyan transformation, these sequences are as memorable as they are iconic. With how popular Dragon Ball continues to be, it can be easy to forget that other anime helped lay the foundation for the series' use of breathtaking displays of power.

A diverse and uniquely appealing medium with countless devoted fans, anime has long since established its niche in mainstream pop culture. What has been considered an obscure and commonly misunderstood hobby in the past has now evolved into a booming worldwide cultural phenomenon acclaimed by general audiences and critics alike.

However, even if anime is more internationally accepted now than ever, plenty of people - even those deeply engrossed in other visual storytelling mediums, like film and TV - are still prejudiced against it, not recognizing anime as worthwhile. Be it due to the intrinsic mischaracterization of animation as “childish,” the lingering negative stereotypes, or the simple lack of exposure; many refuse to give anime a fair chance. Thankfully, these incredible anime films could help even the most skeptical movie buffs change their outlook on the medium.

Related10 Most Rewatchable Anime Films of All Time

Some anime films are so compelling they demand multiple viewings,...

The end of the world was only the beginning, as Akira is coming to SteelBook 4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray on March 4 via Crunchyroll.

Remastered in 4K, the landmark anime film features three Dolby TrueHD audio options: the 2001 English dub in 5.1, the 1988 English dub in 2.0, and the original Japanese audio in 5.1 with English subtitles.

Katsuhiro Otomo directs the 1998 cyberpunk classic from a script he co-wrote with Izo Hashimoto, based on Otomo’s 1982 manga of the same name.

Special Features include:

Akira Sound Making 2019 Akira Sound Clip by Geinoh Yamashirogumi Original 1988 Theatrical End Credits Trailer Collection (with English Subtitles) Storyboard Collection

In the film, “Clandestine army activities threaten the war torn city of Neo-Tokyo when a mysterious being with powerful psychic abilities escapes his prison and inadvertently draws a violent motorcycle gang into a heinous web of experimentation. As a result, a biker with a twisted mind embarks on a path of war,...

Despite having directed some excellent films, as in the case of “Dog Bite Dog” and “Love Battlefield” and a masterpiece in “Limbo”, Soi Cheang's filmography is actually filled with titles of questionable quality, to say the least. “Shamo” which is based on the homonymous manga written by Izo Hashimoto and illustrated by Akio Tanaka definitely lies in the second category.

on Amazon by clicking on the image below

In an expectedly failed effort to fit 34 volumes of a manga into a 105 minutes movie, the script revolves around Ryo Narushima, a young man who ended up in prison for killing his parents. While inside, he is being tortured and abused, with the permission of the notorious warden, Principal Saeki, who seems at least as sinister as the convicts. Just before he commits suicide, though, Ryo is saved by Kenji, a karate master who is in prison for killing the Japanese Prime minister,...

Taika Waititi and Shawn Levy are directors who will play a significant role in the future of Star Wars, but Waititi's project seems to have a long way to go. Waititi may take longer to develop his Star Wars story but is a promising choice for the franchise. Waititi is also working on a live-action adaptation of Akira, a highly acclaimed anime, which could find success following the recent triumphs of Japanese franchises like One Piece on Netflix.

Taika Waititi and Shawn Levy are two of the directors who will be a big part of the future of Star Wars. However, it seems that the projects of both filmmakers still have a long way to go before hitting the big screen. It seems that this is especially true of Waititi's offering to the galaxy far, far away.

Earlier this week, Deadpool 3 director Levy confirmed he was working on his...

From the Scriptwriter of Akira and Director of Lucky Sky Diamond, Izô Hashimoto, Evil Dead Trap 2: Hideki is coming to blu-ray in 2022 from Unearthed Films! Plot: A killer is on the loose in Japan. Young women are being horribly mutilated. Aki, a young woman who works as a film projectionist, is haunted by …

The post Coming to Blu-ray: Evil Dead Trap 2: Hideki appeared first on Horror News | Hnn.

Twilight star Kristen Stewart is on the cusp of stepping out of vampire singularity and into broad-based franchise stardom. Sources state that Stewart has been tapped to play the role of Ky Reed in Akira, a live-action adaptation based off of the legendary Katsuhiro Otomo and Izo Hashimoto Anime film. The film, set to film in New York, has already garnered several major talents to the prospective character roster. Kings Speech and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows star Helena Bonham Carter has been tapped to play Lady Miyako, while Tron: Legacy star Garrett Hedlund is set to play the lead role of Kaneda. Gary Oldman (The Dark Knight Rises, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy) is rumored to play The Colonel. Akira centers on biker named Tetsuo Shima with psychic powers. Kaneda is another biker who tries to stop Tetsuo from unleashing Akira. Die hard fans of Akira will be looking...