Am I the only one surprised that it took this long for this to happen? I remember ten years ago watching Dragonball shows on TV when cartoon networks were just showing their face up here in Canada. Loved it, and it was a short love affair as I moved on and away from cable television. This news was inevitable but wow it took a while to happen.
Twentieth Century Fox is developing Akira Toriyama's popular manga Dragonball for the silver screen. Dragonball was also a long-running TV series and there are more than 25 video games out there, wow, selling more than 10 million units over 5 years.
Here is who we know is in the cast. Vancouver Island native Justin Chatwin [War of the Worlds, The Invisible] has been cast as Goku. And everyone’s favorite vampire, James Marsters [Buffy and Angel TV series] is going to be the film's villain Piccolo. Chatwin has already begun training with 87Eleven, the stunt performance company behind the action sequences in The Matrix, The Bourne Supremacy, Mr. & Mrs. Smith and 300.
On the production side, adding instant credibility for Twitch readers and in a surprise turn I think, actor-director-writer Stephen Chow [Kung Fu Hustle and Shaolin Soccer] is producing this flick. James Wong [Final Destination 1 and 3] will direct from a script he penned, based on an earlier draft by Ben Ramsey.
Shooting is scheduled to begin later this month. Fox plans for a summer release of this sci-fi/adventure worldwide on August 15.
I wish he was directing it... or at least writing it...
Although I missed the boat almost entirely besides some of the really early stuff back in the 80s when I was about 6, I would have thought Dragon Ball would command a bit higher attention than what you've listed.
Especially since, to my knowledge, there has been no big Japanese live-action production to date. Or maybe that's exactly why~
Oh man, there's no way at all this can be good. At least, not if they stay true to the source material.
Wait a minute? That'd be Ben "THE BIG HIT" Ramsey! I wonder how much of his draft survived, because I bet it was fairly awesome. Dude's damn funny and he's got over-the-top action sequences down cold.
My last consecutive post, I swear.
I just got HIV from reading this news.
If Stephen Chow is a producer like Tsui Hark, does he hates the movies he produces when they are actually damn good, and even tries to chop them to fit his vision? Go ask Hark about his opinion on The Killer, or John Woo about what happen to A Better Tomorrow 2.
Anyway, back to topic, considering i dobut this will have Chow's iconic comedy signature, which a movie like this needs in desperation, the only safe veredict is very logic: a cinematic dissaster of epic proportions. Not even Shen Long is going to be able to fix the mess this film is going to be. But i might see it just for the fun of seeing a guy with a silly golden hair wig wire-fighting in the air against a guy painted in green.
There was a taiwanese live action film of Dragon Ball actually, and let's just say is on pair with turkish trash cinema of the 70's.
Chow can't set foot in Canada?
I thought he only wasn't allowed to emigrate to there (the reason being supposed Triad involvement).