Akira (1988 film)

Akira
File:Akira movie poster.jpg Japanese promotional poster
Directed by	Katsuhiro Otomo
Written by	Katsuhiro Otomo Izō Hashimoto
Produced by	Ryōhei Suzuki Shunzō Katō
Starring	Mitsuo Iwata Nozomu Sasaki Mami Koyama Tarō Ishida Mizuho Suzuki
Cinematography	Katsuji Misawa
Edited by	Takeshi Seyama
Music by	Shoji Yamashiro
Production company	TMS Entertainment
Distributed by	Toho
Release date	16 July 1988 (1988-07-16)
Running time	124 minutes
Country	Japan
Language	Japanese
Budget	$11 million
Box office	$80 million

Akira (アキラ, [akiɽa]) is a 1988 Japanese animated cyberpunk action film directed by Katsuhiro Otomo, written by Otomo and Izo Hashimoto, and featuring the voices of Mitsuo Iwata, Nozomu Sasaki, Mami Koyama, and Taro Ishida. The screenplay is based on Otomo's manga Akira, focusing mainly on the first half of the story.

The film depicts a dystopian version of Tokyo in the year 2019, with cyberpunk tones. The plot focuses on teenage biker Tetsuo Shima and his psychic powers, and the leader of his biker gang, Shotaro Kaneda. Kaneda tries to prevent Tetsuo from releasing the imprisoned psychic Akira. While most of the character designs and settings were adapted from the original 2182-page manga epic, the restructured plot of the movie differs considerably from the print version, pruning much of the last half of the manga.

The film became a hugely popular cult film and is widely considered to be a landmark in Japanese animation.

Plot

In Neo-Tokyo, 2019, Shotaro Kaneda leads the Capsules, his bōsōzoku gang, to fight against the rival gang known as the Clowns. However, Kaneda's best friend Tetsuo Shima is injured when he almost crashes his motorcycle into Takashi, a small esper sprung from a secret government laboratory by a dissident underground revolutionary organization. Takashi is captured by armed soldiers and Tetsuo is hospitalized. When Kaneda and his gang are interrogated, he encounters Kei, a member of the revolutionary group, and arranges her release along with his own gang.

File:Neo-Tokyo Akira.jpg

Neo-Tokyo, a booming, industrial city with the ambiance of a society on the edge of collapse

Meanwhile, Colonel Shikishima and Doctor Onishi discover that Tetsuo possesses psychic capabilities similar to Akira, a young esper who caused Tokyo's destruction 31 years earlier. Kiyoko, another esper, has visions of Neo-Tokyo's destruction, and the Colonel tells Onishi to kill Tetsuo if he thinks the power may get out of control. Tetsuo flees from the hospital and meets up with his girlfriend, Kaori, and they steal Kaneda's motorcycle. When Tetsuo and Kaori are confronted by the Clowns, Kaneda and the Capsules save them both. Tetsuo begins to suffer a psychic migraine, and Doctor Onishi has Tetsuo taken back to the hospital.

Saving Kei from being captured after a guerrilla attack, Kaneda is led to the rebels' headquarters and cooperates with them after overhearing their plans to kidnap Tetsuo. Meanwhile, Takashi, Kiyoko and Masaru — another Esper — unsuccessfully attempt to kill Tetsuo. Tetsuo eventually goes on a violent rampage through the hospital, intent on killing the espers. Kaneda, Kei, and the Colonel unsuccessfully try to stop Tetsuo's rampage. Discovering that Akira is in cryonic storage below Neo-Tokyo's new Olympic Stadium, Tetsuo flees.

Kei and Kaneda are detained, but Kiyoko — using Kei as a medium — explains that Tetsuo must be stopped, and facilitates the youths' escape before taking the girl away to combat Tetsuo. Desperate to find Tetsuo, the Colonel places Neo-Tokyo under martial law. Tetsuo confronts and kills Yamagata, a member of the Capsules. He then proceeds to destroy the city as he makes his way to the Stadium, brutally dispatching the military forces who attempt to stand in his way. Upon learning of Yamagata's death from his friend Kai, Kaneda follows Tetsuo to the stadium, seeking revenge. When Tetsuo arrives at Akira's cryonic dewar flask, he defeats Kei and exhumes the Akira vault from the ground, but discovers all that is left of Akira are glass canisters filled with his remains, his body having been subjected to numerous scientific experiments.

Kaneda confronts and unsuccessfully tries to defeat Tetsuo with an experimental laser weapon, while the Colonel uses an orbital laser to sever Tetsuo's right arm. Tetsuo pulls the orbital weapon into the atmosphere and synthesizes an artificial arm from the remains while studying Akira's organs. When Kaori arrives, Tetsuo's psychokinetic powers have begun to cause him immense pain. The Colonel explains that the espers' migraine-controlling drugs administered to Tetsuo are to stunt the evolution of uncontrollable abilities. Despite the Colonel's pleas for Tetsuo to return to the hospital, Tetsuo nearly kills the Colonel, but Kaneda confronts him. Unable to control his powers, Tetsuo's body begins to transform into a giant mass, engulfing Kaneda and crushing Kaori to death.

The espers awaken Akira, who had merely grown beyond the requirement of a coherent biological form. Manifesting himself from the canisters, Akira reunites with his friends. Akira uses his psychic powers to create a blinding ball of light that engulfs the city, which he uses to contain Tetsuo. As Akira confronts Tetsuo, the espers hurry to teleport the Colonel to safety and — over Masaru and Kiyoko's objections — Takashi jumps into the light to rescue Kaneda. The other espers join Takashi, deciding that it will take all three of them to save Kaneda, aware they likely will not be able to return. Kaneda experiences Tetsuo's and the espers' childhood memories, including how much Tetsuo trusted Kaneda as a friend and how the children were first studied before Tokyo's destruction.

The espers remove Kaneda from the destruction and tell him that Akira will be taking Tetsuo to safety; Kiyoko implies that Kei is beginning to develop her own psychic powers, and this is confirmed when Kei calls Kaneda out telepathically. Akira's psychic power destroys most of Neo-Tokyo, and — after disappearing — leaves a void that is quickly filled by the ocean. Doctor Onishi is killed when his research laboratory is crushed. Kaneda awakens to discover that Kei and Kai have survived, and they drive away into the city. The Colonel walks out of the tunnel that the espers teleported him to and watches the sun rising over the destroyed city. Tetsuo comes into full control of his powers as he initiates a Big Bang in another dimension, uttering the words: "I am Tetsuo".

Characters

• Shotaro Kaneda (金田 正太郎, Kaneda Shōtarō) – A carefree gang leader who has a custom-modified motorcycle. Kaneda and Tetsuo have been best friends since early childhood. He is brash and not above teasing Tetsuo despite feeling affection for him as a younger brother. Upon rescuing Kei, Kaneda becomes involved in the activities of her group of anti-government guerrillas in hopes of locating Tetsuo.
• Tetsuo Shima (島 鉄雄, Shima Tetsuo) – Kaneda's best friend since preschool and the second principal subject of the story's theme. Tetsuo is shown as a black sheep in the gang that he is part of and quietly suffers from a deeply rooted inferiority complex. Tetsuo admires Kaneda yet at the same time strongly resents his own reliance upon him. After his psychokinetic abilities manifest, Tetsuo quickly becomes Kaneda's nemesis; he desires Kaneda's motorcycle (a symbol of status and power) and seeks to prove himself supremely powerful, without need of protection. Eventually, his power overwhelms him.
• Kei (ケイ) – A young revolutionary whom Kaneda meets and becomes enamored with on his quest to find Tetsuo. She is a member of an anti-government faction that Ryusaku and Nezu are also involved in. Initially, she does not possess any preternatural abilities, being manipulated by the Espers as a type of medium on several occasions, but upon coming in contact with the Espers' powers, due to their power constantly being channeled through her, she gains powers of her own.
• Colonel Shikishima (敷島大佐, Shikishima-taisa) or simply known as The Colonel – The current head of the ongoing government project which was responsible for inadvertently unleashing Akira's power thirty years earlier. Appearing tough and ruthless, he is nevertheless pragmatic enough to recognize the danger Tetsuo's fledgling powers pose and cares genuinely for the three Espers under his supervision. Amongst the other government figures depicted in the film, he is shown to be the most principled, eschewing the corruption and hedonism that typifies Neo-Tokyo, adhering instead to a strict code of soldierly honour.
• The Espers – Masaru (マサル, codename #27), Takashi (タカシ, codename #26) and Kiyoko (キヨコ, codename #25) – Akira's fellow psychic test subjects. They exhibit a variety of paranormal powers which they use to influence the course of events to the best of their ability. While individually of lesser strength than Akira or Tetsuo, their combined effort proves decisive in the story's final confrontation. Physically, they resemble children with wrinkled faces, white hair and blue-green skin.
• Akira (アキラ, codename #28) – The titular character. Akira was a young boy who developed transcendent psionic, god-like abilities when serving as a test subject for secret government ESP experiments in the 1980s. He subsequently lost control of this power and the ensuing blast completely annihilated Tokyo in a horrifying explosion in 1988. After the apocalyptic event, Akira was recovered and subjected to every test known to modern science, which proved unable to solve the mystery. He was dissected and placed within a cryonic chamber underneath the Neo-Tokyo Olympic Stadium.
• Nezu (根津) – A government mole for the resistance movement, and member of Neo-Tokyo's parliamentary executive council. Responsible for Takashi's abduction by the resistance and supplying intelligence to the underground, he is nevertheless corrupt and unprincipled, and quickly turns against his erstwhile revolutionary allies in a fit of paranoia during the Colonel's coup.
• Yamagata (山形) – One of the most prominent members of Kaneda's gang. He often chides Tetsuo playfully, resulting in his death when Tetsuo's powers begin to emerge.
• Kai (甲斐) – Another member of Kaneda's gang, Kai plays a minor supporting role in the eventual battle against Tetsuo. He is close friends with Yamagata and they remain together when the gang breaks up, being one of the only members to survive.
• Kaori (カオリ) – Tetsuo's girlfriend. She stands by Tetsuo even though he treats her abusively in the hopes of appearing tough to his friends. When Tetsuo begins his rampage through Neo-Tokyo, she follows him, and when his powers manifest and cause his body to warp and expand to grotesque proportions, she is engulfed in his flesh and crushed by his organs.

Voice cast

Character	Original Japanese (1988)	English Dubbed [Kodansha/Streamline] (1988)	English Dubbed [Pioneer/Animaze] (2001)
Shōtarō Kaneda	Mitsuo Iwata	Cam Clarke (Jimmy Flinders)	Johnny Yong Bosch
Tetsuo Shima	Nozomu Sasaki	Jan Rabson (Stanley Gurd, Jr.)	Joshua Seth
Kei (Kay)	Mami Koyama	Lara Cody (Deanna Morgan)	Wendee Lee
Colonel	Tarō Ishida	Tony Pope (Tony Mozdy)	Jamieson Price (James Lyon)
Doctor Ōnishi	Mizuho Suzuki	Lewis Lemay	Simon Prescott (Simon Isaacson)
Ryūsaku (Roy)	Tesshō Genda (Tetsusho Genda)	Steve Kramer (Drew Thomas)	Bob Buchholz (Robert Wicks)
Kiyoko (No. 25)	Fukue Itō (Sachie Ito)	Melora Harte (Marilyn Lane)	Sandy Fox
Takashi (No. 26)	Tatsuhiko Nakamura	Barbara Goodson (Barbara Larsen)	Cody MacKenzie
Masaru (No. 27)	Kazuhiro Kamifuji (Kazuhiro Kando)	Bob Bergen	Cody MacKenzie
Kaori	Yuriko Fuchizaki	Barbara Goodson (Barbara Larsen)	Michelle Ruff (Georgette Rose)
Yamagata (Yama)	Masaaki Ōkura	Tony Pope (Tony Mozdy)	Michael Lindsay (Dylan Tully)
Kai	Takeshi Kusao	Bob Bergen	Matthew Mercer (Matt "Masamune" Miller)
Nezu	Hiroshi Ōtake	Tony Pope (Tony Mozdy)	Mike Reynolds (Ray Michaels)
Miyako	Kōichi Kitamura	Steve Kramer (Drew Thomas)	William Frederick Knight (William Frederick)
Inspector	Michihiro Ikemizu	Bob Bergen	Steve Staley (Steve Cannon)
Eiichi Watanabe	Tarō Arakawa	Jan Rabson (Stanley Gurd, Jr.)	Skip Stellrecht (Henry Douglas Grey)
Mitsuru Kuwata	Yukimasa Kishino	Bob Bergen	Jonathan C. Osborne
Yūji Takeyama	Masato Hirano	Eddie Frierson (Christy Mathewson)	unknown
Army	Kazumi Tanaka	Steve Kramer (Drew Thomas)	Kurt Wimberger
Harukiya Bartender	Yōsuke Akimoto	Bob Bergen	Ivan Buckley

Production

While working on the original manga, Akira, creator Katsuhiro Otomo agreed to an anime adaptation of the series provided he retained creative control. This insistence was based on his experiences working on Harmagedon. The Akira Committee was the name given to a partnership of several major Japanese entertainment companies brought together to realize production of an Akira film. The group's assembly was necessitated by the unconventionally high budget of around ¥1,100,000,000, intended to achieve the desired epic standard equal to Otomo's over 2,000 page manga tale. The committee consisted of publisher Kodansha Ltd., Mainichi Broadcasting System, Inc., Bandai Co., Ltd., Hakuhodo Incorporated, distributor Toho Co., Ltd., Laserdisc Corporation, Sumitomo Corporation and animation producers, Tokyo Movie Shinsha Co., Ltd.

Most anime is notorious for cutting production corners with limited animation, such as having only the characters' mouths move while their faces remained static. Akira broke from this trend with detailed scenes, pre-scored dialogue (wherein the dialogue is recorded before the film starts production and the movements of the characters' lips are animated to match it) – a first for an anime production – and super-fluid motion as realized in the film's more than 160,000 animation cels. Unlike its live-action predecessors, Akira also had the budget to show a fully realized futuristic Tokyo.

The teaser trailer for Akira was released in 1987. The film was completed and released in 1988, two years before the manga officially ended in 1990. Otomo had great difficulty completing the manga; he has stated that the inspiration for its conclusion arose from a conversation that he had with Alejandro Jodorowsky in 1990. Otomo later recalled that the film project had to begin with the writing of an ending that would bring suitable closure to major characters, storylines, and themes without being extraordinarily lengthy, so that he could know in reverse order which manga elements would make the cut into the anime and thus suitably resolve the manga's various elements into a lean, two-hour story.

Otomo is a big fan of Tetsujin 28-go. As a result, his naming conventions match the characters featured in Tetsujin 28-go: Kaneda shares his name with the protagonist of Tetsujin 28-go; Colonel Shikishima shares his name with Professor Shikishima of Tetsujin 28-go, while Tetsuo is named after Shikishima's son Tetsuo Shikishima; Akira's Ryūsaku is named after Ryūsaku Murasame. In addition, Takashi has a "26" tattooed on his hand which closely resembles the font used in Tetsujin 28-go. The namesake of the series, Akira, is the 28th in a line of psychics that the government has developed, the same number as Tetsujin-28.

The sound of Kaneda's bike engine was produced by compositing the engine sound of a 1929 Harley-Davidson motorcycle with a jet engine.

Releases

Theatrical

Akira was released by Toho on July 16, 1988. The film set attendance records for an animated film in Japan. Fledgling North American distribution company Streamline Pictures soon acquired an existing English-language rendition created by Kodansha (originally dubbed for the Hong Kong market) which saw limited release in North American theaters from late 1988 throughout 1989. Streamline is reported to have become the film's distributor when both George Lucas and Steven Spielberg labelled it unmarketable in the U.S. In the UK, Akira was theatrically released by ICA Projects on January 25, 1991 and will be re released on July 13, 2013. In Australia, Akira was theatrically released by Island World Communications and distributed by Satellite Entertainment, later on by Manga Entertainment, then Madman Entertainment after Manga Entertainment's Australia branch merged with Madman. In Canada, the Streamline dub was released by Lionsgate (at the time known as C/FP Distribution) in 1990. In 2001, Pioneer released a new dub which was produced by Animaze and was presented in select theaters from March through December 2001.

Home media

VHS releases included the initial Streamline Video offering (May 1991), later wider distribution by MGM/UA Home Video, and a subtitled edition from Orion Home Video (September 1993). In the UK, Akira was released on video by Island World Communications in 1991. The success of this release led to the creation of Manga Entertainment, who later took over the release. The original VHS release of Akira started up Manga Entertainment Australia and VHS distribution was handled by Ronin Films and Polygram until 1994 when Siren Entertainment took over all of Manga Entertainment Australia's distribution including Akira under a special license from Polygram, who handled Island's video distribution. Akira was re-released on video in 1994, and again on DVD in 2001 and distributed by Madman Entertainment and The AV Channel. The Criterion Collection released a laserdisc edition in 1993. Pioneer Entertainment issued a DVD and a VHS with a new English dub (the dub produced by Animaze) in 2001. This was one of the few releases from Geneon to feature THX-certified audio and video. In 2002, Manga released a two-disc DVD featuring the new Pioneer/Animaze English dub followed in 2004 by another two-disc set containing the original Japanese as well as both the Streamline and Pioneer/Animaze dubs. This version did not contain standard English subtitles, only closed captioning subtitles. In 2005, Manga Entertainment and Boulevard UMD released Akira on UMD for the Sony PSP in the United Kingdom using the original Streamline dub.

A Blu-ray Disc edition of the film was released on February 24, 2009 in North America by Bandai Entertainment under the Honneamise label. A Blu-ray edition of Akira was subsequently released in Australia by Madman Entertainment under exclusive license from Manga Entertainment UK and Kodansha. Madman has recently released a DVD/Blu-ray combo which license is separate from the standalone Blu-ray release because instead of the DVD version being the Manga Video UK version, it uses Madman/Manga's 2001 Special Edition DVD release which is licensed from Manga UK. The Australian Madman/Manga combo is the only Akira release in print that includes the original Streamline dub. The Blu-ray release is the very first to use the highest sampling rate currently possible (Japanese Dolby TrueHD 192 kHz because of its analog roots) and is also the first to use the hypersonic effect (only available in this track and via a high-end audio system). As well as Japanese with English subtitles, the Blu-ray also features the 2001 Pioneer/Animaze English dub. The DVD version of Akira has been re-released in 2012 by Bandai Entertainment. The film was licensed again by Funimation Entertainment following Bandai Entertainment's closure shortly after its DVD release. Funimation has also stated their release will include both the Streamline and Pioneer dubs. Funimation will release a 25th anniversary Blu-ray/DVD combo and separate DVD release on November

Reception and legacy

Roger Ebert selected Akira as his "Video Pick of the Week" in 1989 on Siskel & Ebert and the Movies. For its wider 2001 release, he gave the film "Thumbs Up." As of April 2012, the film has a 90% "fresh" rating on Rotten Tomatoes. The title has been regarded as one of the greatest animated movies of all time and prompted an increase in popularity of anime movies in the US and, generally, outside of Japan. It is still admired for its exceptional visuals. In Channel 4's 2005 poll of the 100 greatest cartoons of all time featuring both cartoon shows and cartoon movies, Akira came in at number 16. On Empire magazine's list of the 500 greatest movies of all time, Akira is number 440. It showed again on Empire's list of The 100 Best Films Of World Cinema, coming in at #51. IGN also named it 14th on its list of Top 25 Animated Movies of All-Time.

Akira is regarded by many critics as a landmark anime film, one that influenced much of the art in the anime world that followed its release with many illustrators in the manga industry citing the film as an important influence. The film led the way for the growth of popularity of anime outside of Japan. Akira is considered a forerunner of the second wave of anime fandom that began in the early 1990s and has gained a massive cult following since then. Akira has also been cited as a major influence on live-action films ranging from The Matrix to Chronicle.

The Akira anime also made TIME magazine's list of top 5 anime DVDs. The film also made number 16 on Time Out's top 50 animated movie list and number 5 on Total Film's Top 50 Animated Films list. Wizard magazine also listed the film as #5 on their list of the greatest anime.

Source	Reviewer	Grade or score	Notes
Anime News Network	Bamboo Dong	Overall (dub): A Overall (sub): A-	DVD/Movie review of Limited Edition Metal DVD Case
AnimeOnDVD	Chris Beveridge	Content: A Audio: A+ Video: N/A Packaging: A+ Menus: A+ Extras: A+	DVD/Movie review of Special Edition
THEM Anime Reviews	Raphael See	4 out of 5	Movie review (1 of 2 reviews)

Soundtrack

Untitled

AKIRA: Original Soundtrack was recorded by Geinō Yamashirogumi (芸能山城組). The music was composed and conducted by musical director Shoji Yamashiro. It features music which was additionally rerecorded for release. "Kaneda", "Battle Against Clown" and "Exodus From the Underground Fortress" are really part of the same song cycle – elements of "Battle" can be heard during the opening bike sequence, for example. The score is generally sequenced in the same order that the music occurs in the film. The North American version featured extensive production notes by David Keith Riddick and Robert Napton.

A second soundtrack was released featuring the original music without rerecording, but it was made into character study collages with sound effects and dialogue from the film; the recording was probably a direct transfer from the film.

Symphonic Suite AKIRA is the same version as AKIRA: Original Soundtrack, but without the voices and sound effects.

Symphonic Suite AKIRA LP track listing

1. "Kaneda"
2. "Tetsuo"
3. "Ohjifuchi"
4. "Exodus From the Underground Fortress"
5. "Requiem"

Symphonic Suite AKIRA & AKIRA: Original Soundtrack CD track listing

1. "Kaneda" – 3:10
2. "Battle Against Clown" – 3:36
3. "Winds Over Neo-Tokyo" – 2:48
4. "Tetsuo" – 10:18
5. "Doll's Polyphony" – 2:55
6. "Shohmyoh" – 10:10
7. "Mutation" – 4:50
8. "Exodus From the Underground Fortress" – 3:18
9. "Illusion" – 13:56
10. "Requiem" – 14:20

AKIRA: The Original Japanese Soundtrack track listing

1. "Kaneda" – 9:56
2. "Tetsuo 1" – 12:36
3. "Tetsuo 2" – 12:33
4. "Akira" – 7:56

Video games

In 1988, Taito released an Akira adventure game for the FamiCom exclusively in Japan. Another Akira game for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System and Sega Genesis and Sega CD was being developed, but cancelled along with prospects of another Akira title for the Game Boy and Game Gear handheld consoles. International Computer Entertainment produced a video game based on Akira for the Amiga and Amiga CD32 in 1994. To coincide with the DVD release in 2002, Bandai released Akira Psycho Ball, a pinball simulator for the PlayStation 2.

Live action film

In 2002, talks that Warner Bros. had acquired rights to create an American live action remake of Akira surfaced.

Since the initial announcement, a number of directors, producers and writers have been reported to be attached to the film, starting with Stephen Norrington (writer/director) and Jon Peters (producer). In 2008, Anime News Network reported that Ruairi Robinson would direct, Gary Whitta would write, and Andrew Lazar, Leonardo DiCaprio, and Jennifer Davisson would produce the film. In late 2009, Whitta stated he was no longer attached to the film, and Mark Fergus and Hawk Ostby were rumored to be taking over the script writing. In February 2010, Deadline.com reported that Warner Bros. were in talks with Allen and Albert Hughes to direct the film. On June 17, 2010, Lazar said that a new writer had been hired and that the movie was being fast tracked. He also stated that only Albert Hughes would direct the film, and that the first movie would be based on volumes 1–3 and the second on volumes 4–6. In April 2011, Chris Weston stated he was working on concept art and storyboards for the live action Akira, but the film had not been approved for production yet. On May 26, 2011 it was reported that Albert Hughes had left the project due to creative differences. On July 14, 2011, Jaume Collet-Serra has been announced as the new director.

Another changing source of speculation has been casting. In 2009 Leonardo DiCaprio and Joseph Gordon Levitt were the rumored stars in the film. In November 2010, it was reported that Zac Efron was in talks for the leading role, and Morgan Freeman would take the role of Colonel Shikishima.

In February 2011, it was reported that James Franco was in talks for the role of Shotaro Kaneda. That same month, Vulture reported that Mila Kunis was offered the role of Kei, but turned it down in favor of portraying the Wicked Witch of the West in Oz: The Great and Powerful. Deadline reported that Garrett Hedlund, Michael Fassbender, Justin Timberlake, Joaquin Phoenix, and Chris Pine are in the running to play Kaneda, while Andrew Garfield and James McAvoy are rumored to be in talks for the role of Tetsuo Shima in March 2011. Deadline also reported Steve Kloves was hired to rewrite the movie and Robert Pattinson was in talks for a role, but he has denied any involvement with the franchise. On May 6, 2011 Keanu Reeves was reported to have been offered the role of Kaneda, but 11 days later on 17 May, he was reported as having turned it down.

George Takei spoke with The Advocate in April 2011 about the casting rumors at that time, stating that any decision to cast white actors in Akira would offend both Asians and the fans of the original manga or animated film.

On October 24, 2011, a new casting call for the live-action remake of Akira was posted on Actors Access, only a few days after Warner Bros. gave production approval once again after years of trying. For Tetsuo, the production team is looking for a male of "any ethnicity" who is 20–25 years old and "strung out, intense, a street rat." For Kei, the casting call was looking for a female between 20–30 years old, also of "any ethnicity", who is "tough, sexy, strong willed, and street savvy." According to Variety, Garrett Hedlund is the frontrunner for the other lead role of Shotaro Kaneda.

As of November 3, 2011, Garrett Hedlund was in talks to portray Kaneda, Helena Bonham Carter has been offered the role of Lady Miyako, Keira Knightley has been approached for a role and Gary Oldman was cast as the Colonel, although Ken Watanabe has instead been offered the part. Actors Alden Ehrenreich, Michael Pitt, Paul Dano, D.J. Cotrona, Logan Marshall-Green, Toby Kebbell, Richard Madden, Rami Malek and Dane DeHaan are the frontrunners to portray Tetsuo. Ezra Miller was a frontrunner for the part of Tetsuo but denied about audition for the film. Kristen Stewart was offered to play the female role of Kei but was never publicly secured or confirmed.

As of January 6, 2012, production has been "shut down" for the fourth time.

On May 28, 2013, Whitta's script of the film shows that Manhattan is owned by the Japanese. On August 1, 2013, Collet-Serra has spoken that he's in talks again to make the film when he finishes with his next movies, Non Stop and Run All Night, hoping that Akira will start filming in 2014, but it's unclear if Hedlund is still attached to star.

See also

• Japanese films of 1988

External links

• Akira Japan official website Template:Ja icon
• Akira North American official website
• Akira at IMDb
• Akira at AllMovie
• Akira at Rotten Tomatoes
• "Akira". Japanese Movie Database. Archived from the original on 21 August 2007. Retrieved 2007-07-19. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help) Template:Ja icon
• BlueBlade Akira (English-based fansite)
• Akira 2019 (English-based fansite)