Live Action ‘Akira’ Movie to Start From Scratch With ‘Daredevil’ Writer 0 622

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A live-action Akira movie has been in the works for what seems like forever now, with the project coming close to fruition back in 2012 when Warner Bros. tapped Juame Collet-Sera (Run All Night, Non-Stop) to direct. However, they suddenly pulled the plug on the project due to budgetary, script and casting issues; the likes of Garret Hedlund, Chris Pine, Michael Fassbender and Kristen Stewart were attached at different stages.

Now we’re hearing word of new life being breathed into the anime-to-live-action adaptation as the studio has reportedly hired Marco Ramirez to write a totally new script for the new version, which is being produced by Leonardo DiCaprio through his Appian Way company and American’s Sniper’s Andrew Lazar.

Ramirez has been doing some great work in TV over the last few years as a writer and producer, including FX’s biker show Sons of Anarchy and notably on Netflix’s recent Daredevil TV series of which he wrote a couple of the best episodes. He will serve as co-showrunner of that show for its second season and it’s likely that his work on it has led to him shooting to the top of the studio’s list to bring the long-gestating Akira to live.

Some die hard fans of the original Japanese Akira manga – set in a post-nuclear apocalypse of “Neo Tokyo” and about two brothers in rival biker gangs who clash when one of them begins abusing his telekinetic powers – will be against them making a Westernized, live action version of the story no matter what they do. But scrapping what was evidently a bad mix and now getting Ramirez – who worked on Daredevil, a show that has heavy Eastern influences at times – seems to suggest they’re going about things in the right way this time.

Akira is just one of many live action adaptations of popular mangas on the way as there’s also Ghost in the Shell, which has Scarlett Johansson attached to star, and Robotech which James Wan is set to direct.

Source: The Wrap

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I'm a freelance film reviewer and blogger with over 10 years of experience writing for various different reputable online and print publications. In addition to my running, editing and writing for Thoughts On Film, I am also the film critic for The National, the newspaper that supports an independent Scotland, covering the weekly film releases, film festivals and film-related features. I have a passion for all types of cinema, and have a particular love for foreign language film, especially South Korean and Japanese cinema. Favourite films include The Big Lebowski, Pulp Fiction and 2001: A Space Odyssey.

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Vincent Cassel To Play Villain in Next ‘Bourne’ Film 0 1458

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After a fourth Bourne film in which Jason himself was conspicuous by his absence, things are returning to the old but brilliant formula of Matt Damon starring and Paul Greengrass directing.

We already know that in addition to Damon returning (rejoice!), Tommy Lee Jones and woman-of-the-moment Alicia Vikander are part of the cast, playing a tough CIA operative and (presumed) love interest, respectively, as well as Julia Stiles reprising her small but crucial role as Bourne helper Nicky Parsons. But now we’re getting word that one of the best French actors in the business is also joining the cast.

Variety has the news that the wonderful Vincent Cassel has signed on to the spy action sequel as its main villain, which will see him match wits and possibly even go toe-to-toe go with the former amnesiac hero. Although exact plot details are being kept secret for the time being, sources are saying that Cassel will play an assassin tracking Bourne. No doubt he will tie in with the Treadstone/Blackbriar history of the Bourne mythology – maybe he’ll be a scorned fellow assassin who feels Bourne somehow wronged him/was chosen ahead of him.

The series has a pedigree of casting great actors as assassins, whether it be Clive Owen in The Bourne Identity, Karl Urban in Supremacy, Edgar Ramirez in Ultimatum and Oscar Isaac in Legacy.

I was already looking forward to the return of the Damon-Greengrass team but the addition of Cassel – genuinely one of my favourite actors of modern times – only makes me wish next summer would get here sooner.

The as-yet-untitled Bourne sequel is set to start shooting this year for a July 29th, 2016 release date.

Source: Variety

Kenneth Branagh To Direct Disney’s ‘Artemis Fowl’ Movie 0 1792

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An adaptation of the mega successful 2001 book Artemis Fowl, and its subsequent series, has been in the works for quite a while now, with mega producer Harvey Weinstein having acquired the rights and tried to get it made for almost 15 years.

After some flipping and flopping on who exactly owns the rights (Disney acquiring Weinstein’s Miramax a decade ago put the brakes on the project), it now appears that things are finally moving forward with the long-awaited big-screen version and it’s being reported that Sir Kenneth Brannagh has been locked down to direct.

Tracking-Boarding has the exclusive on the news on the project, which has intriguingly been described as “Harry Potter meets Die Hard.” That’s just a gift to the people who will end up marketing this thing to the masses. Brannagh appears like the perfect director for it, having just come off a huge success with the $542 million-grossing Cinderella. He will also produce alongside Weinstein.

If you don’t know already, here’s the story of Artemis Fowl as reported on TR:

It follows the brilliant and cunning 12-year-old eponymous criminal mastermind Artemis Fowl II, whose cunning plot to extort gold from the secret Fairy People puts him directly in the cross-hairs of some of the most dangerous creatures on earth. Over the series, Fowl becomes a sort of anti-hero rather than a full-fledged villain, often having to work together with the fairies to stop a slew of treacherous megalomaniacs.

The original draft of the Artemis Fowl script was written by Michael Goldenberg, who wrote 2003’s version of Peter Pan as well as Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, one of the most action-packed installments in the wizarding franchise (in which Brannagh, of course, starred himself). Variety has extra info on this announcement stating that Irish playwright Conor McPherson is in talks to write a new draft. As for the lead character himself, is it just me or does the above artwork make him look spookily like the kid who play Bruce Wayne on Gotham?

The recent successful pate of YA fantasy stories like The Hunger Games and The Maze Runner – not to mention the sure-to-be-successful upcoming Harry Potter spinoff Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them – is probably a major contributing factor in Artemis Fowl finally getting the kickstart in needed. I have to admit I haven’t read the source books but after Harry Potter came to an end, it seems time for another all-encompassing cinematic fantasy phenomenon to come along.

Before he gets to Artemis Fowl, however, Branagh will be working on the recently announced remake of Murder on the Orient Express. He also has a drama called Italian Shoes, with Anthony Hopkins and Judi Dench.

Sources: Tracking-Board and Variety