Since its release in 1988, Akira has set the standard for cyberpunk universes. Not only did Akira‘s animation blow people away at the time, almost thirty years later it’s still impressive. The Neo Tokyo of 2019 is breathtaking, and the over-the-top action holds up. The movie is simply iconic for a good reason, and still has some big fans at Warner Bros. According to various reports, Warner Bros. wants to tap Fast& Furious/Star Trek Beyond director Justin Lin for the live-action Akira. Supposedly Warner Bros. is so desperate to not only make Akira, they feel Justin Lin is the only guy for the job, and they’ll even let him make his pet project Space Jam… As long as he makes Akira.
Yes, Warner Bros. making a family friendly Lebron James vehicle with a large cast of well-known cartoons is on the line here. They really, really want their cyberpunk action film for the ages. Hell, if they pull it off, it could become the next Matrix series. To be fair, Warners isn’t tapped for ideas, moving from comics to manga. They’ve been trying to get this project off the ground for over a decade, with a plethora of writers, directors, and producers in the mix. Even Mad Max‘s George Miller was considered as a director before he started work on other projects.
Hopefully, this happens. But, the legacy of Akira is currently untouchable. Everyone knows that if this live-action adaptation is made, it has to be as genre-defying as the anime. Anything less than your mind being completely blown and triggering a big bang in a parallel universe is a disappointment. Can Justin Lin meet those expectations? The studio thinks so.
(Via ScreenRant)
