In a move that is sure to appease Hubert (pictured above) and the rest of the “white-washing” naysayers, Japanese actor Ken Watanabe is reportedly in talks to play The Colonel in the upcoming Akira adaptation. For those who haven’t seen the 1988 anime, Colonel Shikishima is the head of the Akira project that is ultimately tasked with controlling Tetsuo once his powers wreak havoc. Prior to these negotiations, names like Gary Oldman and Morgan Freeman were thrown around for the role but ultimately never sticked. Also as of this post, eight actors are battling for the role of Tetsuo and Kristen Stewart may or may not be playing Mei.
I, unlike Hubert and most of you, am actually looking forward to a new Akira. It’ll be interesting, if anything, to see the film that introduced me to anime transfered into a modern action packed spectacle. What’s important to remember is that a live action adaptation will in no way take demote the original and that a new perspective/version of the story could possibly be decent, something I’m reserving judgement on until I at least see a trailer of sorts.
So does the possibility of Ken Watanabe quell your fears of an abysmal white-washed version of Akira? No? Yea, I figured.
[Via Collider]
