Akira Hollywood Violation Uncancelled

A Hollywood theatrical adaptation of classic manga/anime Akira was previously thought to be safely cancelled, but now it appears Warner Brothers has reanimated the project, and it is set to shamble forth from the grave, for release in 2011, with a sequel already on the cards…

The source froths enthusiastically about the impending disaster:

According to my source, screenwriters Mark Fergus and Hawk Ostby, guys whose work I like, are about to turn in their version of an “Akira” movie and the reason why the project has been so quiet is they’ve been hard at work trying to get the script right.

For those that aren’t familiar with their work, they wrote the amazing adaptation of “Children of Men” and they’re also credited with “Iron Man” (although a lot of that movie was written on the set). But my point still stands that I like their work and I’m happy they’re taking a crack at it.

Also, while I couldn’t get a lot of info about what changes are being made from the anime to make the feature film work, I did confirm the story is still set in post-apocalyptic Manhattan in the near future. I also confirmed the famous motorcycle is definitely a part of the film, but that bit of info shouldn’t surprise anyone.

From what I could gather, the movie is still a priority for the studio, and if the script meets with approval from key people, the movie could go into production in 2010 with a release date in 2011. Also, this isn’t going to be some mid-range budget movie. If the film goes into production, it’s going to be one of those BIG event movies.

Of course, everything I just wrote is based on a lot of factors, but that’s where the project currently stands. Anyone hoping for an “Akira” live-action movie should cross their fingers that Mark Fergus and Hawk Ostby’s screenplay is great and everyone involved gets excited. I’ll have more on this story as I hear it.

Lest you forget, this is set to be a Dragonball-esque Hollywood star vehicle (Leonardo DiCaprio was rumoured to be involved), now set in New Manhattan and looking set to dispense with every aspect of the original, save its big red bikes and gang violence.

With the chances of a character called “Akira” even appearing in the feature looking slim, it seems obvious the only objective of the project is the usual ferocious cash-in of the kind of quality IP Hollywood so desperately lacks…