Warner Bros. is courting Justin Lin to direct their live-action movie, "Akira." Lin is best known as the director of the hit space film "Star Trek Beyond."
The studio has been planning to launch its film adaptation of "Akira" for a while and believes that the "Star Trek" director is the best person to lead the entire cast.
ComicBookMovie stated that "Akira" is originally a classic manga/anime that Warner Bros. plan to convert into a live-action movie. The project has been moving in and out of development since 2002. Several directors were named to potentially helm the film in the past, namely Albert Hughes, Stephen Norrington, Ruairi Robinson, Gary Whitta and Jaume Collet-Serra, although none was confirmed to actually begin production.
The story of the "Akira" movie changed its setting in the United States and the characters, were "whitewashed," which loyal fans did not appreciate. Not a lot of details about the planned movie have been released, and rumors continue to circulate that it will remain in development hell for a while. Lin has not yet commented on the issue, so fans have to wait longer until the producers make a final announcement. More updates and details are expected soon.
ScreenRant noted that "Akira" had a hit 1988 2D animated film, although viewers are skeptical whether Hollywood can be successful in the project, despite the recent backlash in westernizing the concept. Marco J. Ramirez was reportedly hired to write a fresh script draft for the film in June 2015.
In the recent episode Meet the Movie Press, host Jeff Sneider shared the Justin Lin is on top of the list to potentially direct "Akira." Earlier in 2016, Lin was said to be actively involved in "Space Jam 2" for Warner Bros. The studio heads are allegedly more willing to give their approval to launch the basketball sequel if the director commits to working on "Akira." Hollywood has yet to prove that it can properly create a good whitewashed version of famous anime titles.
In the original series, "Akira" is set in an alternate reality where World War III happened during the 1980s. The plot's main setting is in the dystopian world of Tokyo, called Neo-Tokyo, in 2019.
If Lin agrees to direct "Akira," it is expected that the live-action version will feature a more diverse cast and a story which would be largely inspired by Otomo's source material. More updates and details are expected soon.
