Irish man to direct live-action Akira
Irish man Ruairi Robinson has been hired to direct the big screen version of the Anime classic "Akira" which is to be produced by Leonardo DiCaprio. "Akira" will mark the feature directorial debut for Robinson who was a Best Animated Short Oscar nominee in 2001 for a sci-fi comedy called "Fifty Percent Grey." He also wrote and directed a sci-fi short titled "The Silent City" in 2006 which starred Cillian Murphy."Akira" originated in 1988 as a manga and then as an animated film co-written and directed by Katsuhiro Otomo. The story was set in a neon-lit futuristic post-nuclear war "New Tokyo" in 2019 where a teen biker gang member is subjected to a government experiment which unleashes his latent powers. The gang's leader must find a way to stop the ensuing swathe of destruction.
With its mature themes and cutting-edge animation, "Akira" was a milestone movie in anime and even animation circles, and led the way for anime making inroads into Western pop culture in the 1990s.
Robinson approached Warner Brothers with a vision of a two part adaptation, which is currently being written by Gary Whitta. The new story moves the action to "New Manhattan" a city rebuilt by Japanese money.
Greg Silverman is overseeing for Warners. Otomo is executive producing with Jennifer Davisson and DiCaprio from Appian Way along with Andrew Lazar from Mad Chance producing.
The studio is eyeing a summer 2009 release for the first movie.