The live-action adaptation of the hit anime series My Hero Academia was first confirmed back in 2022 and has been in development ever since. Since the announcement, there has been no official word what’s been happening with the project, or if it will even be a movie or a television series. During an exclusive interview with Collider, producer Joby Harold (Monarch: Legacy of Monsters, Obi-Wan Kenobi) confirmed that he is working on the project.
ALREADY IN THE WORKS
While discussing Apple TV’s Monarch: Legacy of Monsters, Harold was first asked whether the project is actually happening. Harold is currently set as a writer for the project, and according to him, the show appears to be moving forward.
“Yes, it is. Absolutely. It is something I’m working on and loving working on. I’m excited to do it and get it out there. It’s a big one.”
-Joby Harold-
Currently, there has been no official statement about whether the project will be a series or a film. According to Harold, he says he can’t speak too much about it, only that it will be live-action. Harold added on the adaptation while speaking to Collider, “I can speak to the fact that it is live-action and I think that’s probably all I can speak to, but it’s a big deal in my life. I’m really enjoying it… It’s amazing. It’s an amazing opportunity and I’m really excited about it.”
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Legendary Entertainment is also collaborating with Netflix for the adaptation. Kôhei Horikoshi, who both wrote and illustrated the beloved Japanese manga, is credited as being a writer on the project alongside Harold. Based on the project’s IMDB listing, Don Burgess is set to be the cinematographer, Jay Ashenfelter is a producer, and Spencer Averick is the lead editor.
ALL ABOUT MY HERO ACADEMIA
My Hero Academia manga was first released in 2014. It is known as one of the best-selling mangas of all time and it was ultimately made into an anime series in April 2016. The popular anime/manga follows Izuku Midoriya, a boy who was born with a ‘Quirk’ (superpowers) and is enrolled into a prestigious hero academy where he learns what it means to be a hero.
In January 2015, Viz Media announced that in February of that year, they would officially translate the series into English for release in the Viz Shonen Jump. In August 2018, My Hero Academia had sold over 16 million copies and when Volumes 1-20 were reprinted, it brought up to 18 million copies into circulation. By January 2022, the series had achieved over 65 million copies in circulation worldwide.
The reception for the series has been positive with reviewers praising the manga for its art, characters, storytelling, action sequences and the use of pop culture references to Western superhero comics. When it comes to animated series, additional praise for the animation, music, pacing, action sequences and voice performances in both Japanese and English were given. It has also received many awards including Sugoi Japan Award Harvey Award for Best Manga. It also received two nominations for Anime of the Year at the Crunchyroll Anime Awards.
A seventh season of the anime is currently in development and also a fourth animated film installment. There is currently no information on a release date nor any plot points about the live-action adaptation, let alone casting, pre-production, or principal photography. Based on Harold’s comments, it sounds like it’s still in development phases or scripting stages, and it hasn’t started actual principal production yet.
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The project is under wraps so any new information will be released at a later date. It’s expected to stream exclusively on Netflix. Meanwhile, the other seasons of My Hero Academia can be streamed now on Crunchyroll.
What do you guys think? Are you a My Hero Academia fan? If you are, are you excited that Netflix and Legendary Entertainment are making the series into a live-action project? Do you think it’s going to be a film or a series? Let us know and don’t forget to check out our socials! If you like this article, follow us for more content!
SOURCE: Collider
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