We recently learned three new names in the mix to direct a live-action Akira movie for Warner Bros. based on the popular manga series and anime film. They included Daniel Espinosa, David F. Sanberg, and Get Out’s Jordan Peele, the latter said to be currently courted by the studio.
Previously, George Miller and Justin Lin had been said to have approached in the last year or so.
Well, it looks like another Asian director was in the mix. Variety’s Justin Kroll is adding that Tokyo-born director Hiro Murai was once a candidate too, confirming he’s no longer in the running.
In relation to @TheInSneider AKIRA talk on MTMP, another Asian director that WB was high on, Hiro Murai, who directed a lot of ATLANTA eps
— Justin Kroll (@krolljvar) March 31, 2017
The music video director took a big leap recently directing episodes of the acclaimed series Atlanta. It’s stars have since landed high-profile projects with Donald Glover joining Han Solo and Zazie Beetz playing Domino in Deadpool 2.
Oddly enough, hiring an Asian director and even more a director with Japanese roots feels like a step in the right direction. Many previous incarnations of the film have attempted to whitewash the main leads and Americanize the story along with it’s setting. An attempt to remove a majority of it’s deep Japanese roots.
Although, while talented as hell I’m not entirely sure Jordan Peele is going to fight tooth-and-nail to make sure the film as authentic as it could be.
Warner Bros. has a studio division in Japan with Warner Bros. Japan, this means the studio does have the production tools in place to shoot in Japan if they wanted to. Usually it’s extremely expensive to shoot foreign film productions in Japan, but if Warner Bros. Japan undertakes a partnership with it’s American counterpart it could reduce costs dramatically.
SOURCE: VARIETY