Akira Live-Action Movie Release Date Confirmed

The live-action Akira movie finally has a release date. The Hollywood adaptation of the classic classic and manga has been in development for many years and will be directed by Thor Ragnarok's Taika Waititi.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Warner has confirmed that the movie will hit theaters on May 21, 2021. This follows a story last month that the film will be shot entirely in California, and will be produced by Leonardo DiCaprio through his Appian Way production company.

Interestingly, action sequel John Wick Chapter 4 is also currently set for release on May 21, 2021. Back in 2011, John Wick star Keanu Reeves was reportedly offered the lead role in an Akira adaptation, which ultimately never happened.

No casting news about the movie has been announced so far, but Waititi has been involved with the project since 2017. In April last year he spoke about his intentions for it. "What I want to do is an adaptation of the books," he said. "A lot of people are like, 'Don't touch that film!' and I'm like, 'I'm not remaking the film, I want to go back to the book.' There are six gigantic books to go through. It's so rich."

Waititi is the latest in a long line of filmmakers to be linked to the Akira remake. The likes of David Sandberg (Shazam), Daniel Espinosa (the upcoming Morbius), Justin Lin (Star Trek: Beyond), George Miller (Mad Max), and Jaume Collet-Serra (The Shallows) have all been attached at various stages over the years.

The manga of Akira ran between 1982 and 1990 and is widely credited for popularising Japanese comic books internationally. Equally, the success of the 1989 movie version did much to introduce Western viewers to anime, and is now considered one of the finest sci-fi films ever made.