Maybe it’s a curse. Or maybe it’s a blessing.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, the production offices in Vancouver for the production of “Akira†live-adaption are being closed.
“Everybody is being sent home,†said an insider to THR.
The below-the-line talent and crew were told to stop working. Apparently, THR stated the reasons its due to casting and budgetary issues.
In the next couple of weeks, the producers Jennifer Kiloran Davisson, Andrew Lazar and director Jaume Collet-Serra will iron out the script again to make the project more feasible for Warner Brothers Pictures. It is not known if Steve Kloves (“Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stoneâ€) will be brought in again to rewrite the script.
The “Akira†movie adaptation project had several issues in the past with a high-price budget and casting rumors.
In this round, Collet-Serra managed to bring down the budget in the $90 million range (it was nearly $200 million when director Albert Hughes planned to direct this a year ago). However, insiders told THR that Warner Brothers want the budget even smaller between $60 million and $70 million.
Only actor Garrett Hedlund (“Tron: Legacyâ€) has officially signed on to the project. Other actors Kristen Stewart, Ken Watanabe and Helena Bonham Carter are in various stages of negotiations at this time.
The adapted film version will be an action film in New Manhattan rather than post-apocalyptic Neo-Tokyo. The storyline revolves around Kaneda saving his best friend from a medical experiment that threatens to unleash destructive powers.
Is “Akira†dead yet? Not quite so.
“It’s a very resilient movie,†said one insider to THR. “Warner Brothers just won’t let it die.â€
Source: The Hollywood Reporter
