George Miller, original director of the Mad Max series of movies, has revealed plans to make an anime sequel to the classic post-apocalyptic, petrol-scavenging movie that propelled the then unknown actor Mel Gibson to stardom.
This comes as the latest news in a recent trend of Hollywood involvement with anime, which includes the Dragonball film and the upcoming Cowboy Bebop live-action film that will star Keanu Reeves.
This news was released on the MTV website yesterday, with little in the way of concrete details other than the Australian director’s declaration that the next Mad Max film, the first in 14 years, will be an anime, and will not involve Mel Gibson.
Miller, who directed all three films of the series, [Mad Max (1979), Mad Max 2, also known as The Road Warrior (1981), Mad Max: Beyond Thunderdome (1985)] is quoted thusly:
“I see myself as someone who is very curious about storytelling and all its various media…I’ve always loved anime, in particular the Japanese sensibility. It’s something I’ve always wanted to do.”
No information is given on possible studios, producers, or cast, so the project may well still be in the early stages of planning and take years to materialize, but Miller has recently worked as a director in Warner Bros. projects that include the 2006 Oscar-winning family friendly animated CG movie, “Happy Feet”, so the 64 year-old director does possess the clout and wherewithal to make his announcement be taken seriously.
Information is definitely scarce at this point, but one interesting, additional nugget is the following quote from Miller:
“The anime is an opportunity for me to shift a little bit about what anime is doing because anime is ripe for an adjustment or sea change…It’s coming in games and I believe it’s the same in anime.
There’s going to be a hybrid anime where it shifts more towards Western sensibilities. Kurosawa was able to bridge that gap between the Japanese sensibilities and the West and make those definitive films.”
Putting aside the immediate concern likely to result by the implied conceit that an Australian director’s vision for Japanese-style anime might be preferable to that held by the Japanese anime studios themselves, one conclusion that may be reached is that the Mad Max anime might not even involve any Japanese anime studio at all, as Miller has previously worked on an animated film and that he seems determined to not make the adaptation a traditional anime.
In any case, further news of the Mad Max animation will likely be of interest to many, if for no other reason that live-action to anime adaptations are (for obvious reasons) much more palatable to otaku then when the process occurs in reverse.
Via MTV.
I’m amused how easily that picture reminded me of Fallout. I never happened to watch Mad Max, but the game was outstanding for me and it’s nostalgic to see the combination of that leather jacket and the dog.
Fallout has a replica of it, which is the first and lightest armor you find (robes notwithstanding). And each time I’ve played it, it was always particularly satisfying to put on that first armor, as I clear out Vault 15.
I wish for the artist that drew the cars in the Initial D manga or someone better to draw the post apocalyptic cars in Moemax. INTERCEPTOR! XD
I think a Mad Max anime has been done already *cough* FIST OF THE NORTH STAR! *cough*
Every Mad Max movie got progressively worse and somebody with a fascination for that, furthermore turning it into an anime, probably wont change that.
That was then, this is now.
People need to stop going on how this film is to be some kind of cartoon-it was only briefly considerd as an option by the producer/director.
We know by now that the film will be live action and will be filmed in Australia (not Namibia) in 2011/2012, after Happy Feet 2 and Justice League.
Budget will be only AUD $50 million, down from the original $100 million USD, but $50 mil goes along way in OZ when it comes to movie making.
Mel Gibson will not appear as Max but possibly as a cameo in a dream sequence or end of life sequence.
40 year old Aussie actor Steve Innes is set to be cast as Max, if he has not been already.
The film will be set about 20 years after Thunderdome, when Max is about 60, not 200 years into the future with events set around Max’s great, great Grandson!!!!
The film should be released in 2013.