Akira will have an all Asian cast

There has been many a tales about the upcoming Akira film.  The latest being that Keanu Reeves was confirmed for the lead role.  This was in fact true, until that is, he turned it down.

There was a upstir over the authenticity of the film.  The original manga and 1990’s film were both set in a post apocoplyptic Tokyo with biker gangs, and well, it was just a Japanese film. 

Their original intentions after being given the rights was to revamp it and give it a Yank feel towards it.  Set it in New York, then get an all American cast, then make it well, an American film.

The first sign of deterioration was that they then said it was going to be set in Japan after all but with American actors.  Then after a large petition from George Takai and other outraged fans they’ve decided to drop the American actors as well.

The whole production has now gone into hibernation mood, and although the film hasn’t been cancelled there is now a thought process which likely revolves around ‘if our main fan base is pissed, then we don’t have a leg to stand on’. 

So they’re now looking for Asian actors to forfill the roles, and there are many out there who can do the role.  But the question is whether they use already established Japanese actors or American-Japanese and try make a cross-over culture film.

Personally,  the latter would be the most sensible choice.  If there is too much swing in either direction then there will be a feeling of exclusion from both sides.  So a happy middle?  Maybe.

The full quote from the studios is:

 "Production on Akira has not halted or been shut down, as the film has not yet been greenlit and is still very much in the development stage. The exploratory process is crucial to a project of this magnitude, and we will continue to sculpt our approach to making the best possible film."

So there you have it.  Opinions below!

Ben Doran