The Hollywood adaptation of Japanese anime continues as Paramount Pictures and Bad Robot announced today they have won the rights to adapt the hit Japanese film YOUR NAME for the big screen. Guess the experience of Ghost in the Shell and Death Note hasn’t soured the pot just yet.
J.J. Abrams and Lindsey Weber will produce for Bad Robot, along with Genki Kawamura, producer of the original film. Screenwriter Eric Heisserer (Arrival) will adapt Shinkai’s screenplay.
Makoto Shinkai‘s original film tells the story of a teenage boy and girl from different backgrounds who discover they can swap bodies. They become desperate to cross space and time to find a way to meet and stop an impending disaster.
The original version of YOUR NAME became the fourth-highest-grossing film of all time in Japan and, as of 16 January 2017, the highest-grossing anime film of all time, overtaking Hayao Miyazaki’s Spirited Away. Shinkai has also written a light novel version of the film that was released this month in English language.
For lovers of the original film, this is the kind of news that we approach with trepidation. Hollywood’s take on Akira has been stuck in development hell for years due to complex cultural notes that are difficult to Americanise, and the accusations leveled against Death Note‘s whitewashing and cultural appropriation make this a bit of a minefield for a studio.
Australians can revisit YOUR NAME from 8 November 2017 when Madman Entertainment releases it on DVD and Blu-ray following a theatrical run earlier this year.
