Hollywood has no intention of letting go of its
claws on the anime industry, and this time they are going for one of the
untouchable giants. The production company Lionsgate officially
confirmed that the ambitious live-action adaptation of Naruto has
already entered its pre-production phase. To prove that the project is serious,
the studio has just opened a huge global casting call with a
single, very difficult goal in mind: to find the perfect actors who will give
life to Naruto Uzumaki, Sasuke Uchiha and Sakura Haruno, the legendary founding
members of Team 7.
To try to tame this beast of entertainment, the
film will be under the strict direction of Destin Daniel Cretton,
who said he was immensely honored to be able to bring these iconic characters
to the big screen for the first time in history. But what really left many with
their mouths open was the reaction of Masashi Kishimoto himself.
Far from being skeptical of the history of failures that the West usually has
with these works, the creator of the original manga confessed
that seeing his work make this monumental leap into Hollywood feels like a real
streak of miracles, showing himself desperate to meet the actors who will
finally embody his creations.
It's no secret that, since serialization began
in 1999, this franchise has become a media juggernaut with
millions of extremely protective fans around the planet. The decision to open
auditions globally clearly reflects that Lionsgate knows it can't afford to go
wrong with the leading trio. While the casting for the rest of the motley cast
of ninjas will be gradually revealed over the next few months, all the pressure
is now on finding faces that can convey the essence of the source material
without falling into the ridiculous.
Considering Hollywood's incredibly shaky track
record when it comes to adapting Japanese works
