With a high budget and a talented creative team, anything is possible.
It is a truth universally acknowledged that the West isn’t good at adapting anime and manga, unless it’s drawing inspiration from popular works and reimagining them from a different angle. Think Inception vs. Paprika or The Matrix vs. Ghost In The Shell. The recent example of a live-action adaptation is, of course, the new Netflix One Piece series, but can Hollywood learn from its success?
Attack on Titan is known for its complex narrative, intense action sequences, and visually impressive, terrifying Titans. Achieving the same level of intensity, horror, and emotional impact in a live-action adaptation would require a significant budget, talented filmmakers, and a deep understanding and respect for the manga.
Something of the aforementioned was definitely lacking in the making of the 2015 Japanese Attack on Titan movie. The two-part movie was criticized for poor dialogue, bad acting, and unnecessary changes to the source material. Does that mean that the anime doesn’t translate well into live action?
Not necessarily. In fact, we’d argue that the untapped potential of the horror that Titans present to humans could only be fully realized in the live-action form. Cartoon giants will never be as impactful as their CGI equivalent in the context of a real movie, with people played by real actors reacting and being brutally killed off.
The adaptation could be turned into a big franchise with multiple parts, as there’s plenty of the material to work with. Casting wouldn't be a problem either: after all, most characters have vaguely European names and features that can be changed if needed. Of course, race is central to the story, but the main idea of the manga can still be preserved in talented, careful hands.
Ultimately, only time will tell if Hollywood can successfully adapt Attack on Titan for the big screen. And we might find that out sooner than we think: the production of a live-action movie is apparently in the works at Warner Bros.
It’s still too early to get our hopes up, though: so far, no concrete information has been revealed about the cast or an approximate release date. With how often ambitious projects like this get shelved, we choose to remain cautiously supportive and hopeful that it might come to fruition at some point in the future, after all.
With a high budget and a talented creative team, anything is possible.
It is a truth universally acknowledged that the West isn’t good at adapting anime and manga, unless it’s drawing inspiration from popular works and reimagining them from a different angle. Think Inception vs. Paprika or The Matrix vs. Ghost In The Shell. The recent example of a live-action adaptation is, of course, the new Netflix One Piece series, but can Hollywood learn from its success?
Attack on Titan is known for its complex narrative, intense action sequences, and visually impressive, terrifying Titans. Achieving the same level of intensity, horror, and emotional impact in a live-action adaptation would require a significant budget, talented filmmakers, and a deep understanding and respect for the manga.
Something of the aforementioned was definitely lacking in the making of the 2015 Japanese Attack on Titan movie. The two-part movie was criticized for poor dialogue, bad acting, and unnecessary changes to the source material. Does that mean that the anime doesn’t translate well into live action?
Not necessarily. In fact, we’d argue that the untapped potential of the horror that Titans present to humans could only be fully realized in the live-action form. Cartoon giants will never be as impactful as their CGI equivalent in the context of a real movie, with people played by real actors reacting and being brutally killed off.
The adaptation could be turned into a big franchise with multiple parts, as there’s plenty of the material to work with. Casting wouldn't be a problem either: after all, most characters have vaguely European names and features that can be changed if needed. Of course, race is central to the story, but the main idea of the manga can still be preserved in talented, careful hands.
Ultimately, only time will tell if Hollywood can successfully adapt Attack on Titan for the big screen. And we might find that out sooner than we think: the production of a live-action movie is apparently in the works at Warner Bros.
It’s still too early to get our hopes up, though: so far, no concrete information has been revealed about the cast or an approximate release date. With how often ambitious projects like this get shelved, we choose to remain cautiously supportive and hopeful that it might come to fruition at some point in the future, after all.
