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Our favourite New Zealand son. Our New Zealander of the year. Our Kiwi Marvel director rebooting the hell outta the superhero universe to some kinda 80s pulp 3D extravaganza…

It seems that the live-action Akira movie is still not dead, (Um, Keanu Reeves!) as Warner Bros. has approached New Zealand Director Taika Waititi to direct the legendary film..

What with Thor: Ragnarok on the way and the amazing What We Do in the Shadows, Waititi is definitely a fantastic and fascinating choice to direct this kind of film.

That said, does the world doesn’t need a live-action Akira movie?

This is because the manga of Akira is lengthy and complex, something that even the manga’s author Katsuhiro Otomo wrestled with when he directed the anime adaptation.

So to have another movie of an anime adaptation from an incredibly involved manga is not the best starting point for a film.

Otomo also has final sign-off on a live-action movie adaptation.

“When it comes to Akira I have already finished the original manga and my own anime version too. So in that sense, I am basically done with Akira. If someone wants to do something new with Akira then I am mostly okay with that. As I accepted the offer for a live-action Akira to be made, so I am generally okay with whatever they want to do with it. However, I did give one major condition to a live-action version and that is that I had to check and approve the scenario.”

So the real question here is not who Warner Bros. wants to direct the movie but whether Otomo has signed-off on the scenario in the first place?

Personally, would a TV series based off the manga of Akira be a better fit here than a movie? Who would play the lead character (insert, Keanu Reeves – name here)

But he biggest question, does anybody want to see another beloved anime great made into a live-action feature film? Time will only tell if New Zealand Director Taika Waititi will be the ‘one’ to pull this great transition off.