The project to turn Akira into a live-action movie has been changing hands for more than 20 years. Recently, Warner Bros. finally dismissed the film’s production, and Kodansha regained the rights.
During this time, many names have been mentioned as possible directors for this film, and the one most likely to make it was Taika Waititi. The New Zealand filmmaker even began pre-production, until he signed on to direct Thor: Ragnarok and (once again) the project was put on hold.
Part of that preliminary work are the drawings by Phil Langone, a specialist in storyboards for movies. In 2019, Phil began working on Akira by sketching the scene of Tetsuo descending into the bunker where Akira was frozen. The artist recently shared those stories on his Instagram account. Enjoy the reels:
We’ve spoken with Langone about these drawings and the creative process. In his own words:
“I met Waititi in his office. He showed me the years worth of concept art they had done and then discussed the scene I was to start off on. I had to brush up on Akira’s story and art. I’m always conscious of trying to stay true to the original art and intention, especially for something like Akira which so many people know and love. I drew this scene starting with thumbnails and my own shot list, really trying to build tension, showed Waititi and he seemed pretty happy. Shortly after, the production was shut down by Warner Bros., so I only had the chance to start with this one sequence”.
Another glimpse of what could have been the most anticipated live-action film in recent times. Who knows if a new production company will take up the project in the future…
Special thanks to Phil Langone for sharing! For more of his great artwork, visit langoneart.com.
