My Hero Academia is getting a live-action movie from Netflix, and—like many of my reactions to live-action adaptations of anime—my response is a resounding … shrug? With, like, a hissing inhale and a sort of grimace? Like, just an “okay … I mean, I don’t think it’s a good idea, but if you guys REALLY WANNA SPEND THE MONEY, then I won’t stop you …”
Netflix is spending the money. Lots of it.
I mean, how could they not? With the resounding success of critically acclaimed live-action anime adaptations like Death Note and Cowboy Bebop, I’m certain that My Hero Academia‘s live-action adaptation will be just as good if not even better than the original. Just like the live-action Cowboy Bebop was soooo much better than the—OKAY I CAN’T EVEN KEEP THIS JOKE GOING ANYMORE IT JUST FEELS BAD AT THIS POINT. IT HURTS TO BE SARCASTIC BECAUSE I HAD HOPES OF A GOOD LIVE-ACTION ADAPTATION AND MY DREAMS WERE DASHED ONCE AGAIN. I’M READY NETFLIX. SACRIFICE THE LEGACY OF ANOTHER GOOD ANIME ON YOUR LIVE-ACTION ALTAR. LET THE BLOOD RUN. LET IT FLOW. YOU WOUND ME AGAIN AND AGAIN, BUT I RISE STRONGER AND MORE CYNICAL EVERY TIME.
Let’s get this over with …
Who’s making this live-action My Hero Academia movie?
(i.e., whose heads will be on the chopping block when it comes out?) Per the recent announcement, the screenplay is being written by Joby Harold, and is being directed and executive produced by Shinsuke Sato in his English-language debut. Harold is known for his work on Obi-Wan Kenobi and Army of the Dead. The former was canceled after one season, the latter was a box office bomb. Yikes. As for Shinsuke Sato, he has directed live-action adaptations of big name anime such as Bleach, Gantz, and Death Note. The rights to produce the live-action series were bought by Legendary Entertainment, known for producing big ol’ monster movies like Godzilla. Netflix acquired the rights to My Hero Academia in 2018 and will release the upcoming live-action reboot.
My hopes are not exactly high. They tried to smoke the My Hero Academia live-action weed, but it turned out to be oregano. My hopes are now stone sober, confused, and $40 poorer.
Remind me what the anime series is about so I can watch that instead?
What is My Hero Academia about? My Hero Academia is about Shonen McBoykid Izuku Midoriya, who lives in a world where most of the human population has some form of superpower, known as a “quirk.” Quirks are of varying strength. Some people can shoot fire out of their fists, other people just have big noses so they can … smell … better? Poor Midoriya doesn’t even get THAT. The boy has NO quirk. Zip. Zero. None. Like every shonen character, he wants to be the greatest of heroes, and like every shonen anime, the world tells him no. He is undaunted, however, and eventually inherits superpowers from his favorite hero, All-Might. He then goes to school to learn how to be a hero with a gaggle of other super-powered kids, and has to thwart a sinister evil that is brewing in the world.
When will the live-action My Hero Academia movie release?
Unclear! Netflix announced that Harold is writing and Sato is directing the live-action reboot, and … that’s about it for now. My best guess is that it will be released sometime in 2023, maybe 2024 at the latest.
So … should we watch My Hero Academia …? Or no?
I mean, like … if it’s a Sunday night and you’ve got laundry to fold … yeah? It might be kinda cool? Listen, I’m giving live-action anime series a lot of hate here because they’ve let me down so. many. times. But they haven’t all let me down. The fight scenes in the live-action Ruroni Kenshin were sick. But it probably helps that that movie is much more grounded in reality than other titles. It’s easier to make a live-action samurai film than it is to make a cyberpunk opus like Ghost in the Shell, and once you have to rely on CGI then all hope is lost. Death Note‘s live-action Ryuk will NEVER look as good as the animated one (even if Willem Dafoe plays him) because the drawing of him is IMPECCABLE. Live-action anime adaptations seem to fly in the face of why people WATCH ANIME IN THE FIRST PLACE. When we watch anime, we do it so we don’t HAVE to look at real people. I look at real people ALL DAY. Why would I wanna do it while I’m TRYING TO RELAX? The real world is mundane. The real world is exhausting. The real world is never as stylish or cool or easy or carefree as anime makes it out to be. We turn to anime to ESCAPE from things that are “live.” I don’t care if you put “action” in it, I prefer my action animated. Looks better that way.
(featured image: Viz Media)
