Beat Takeshi Cast In Live-Action Ghost In The Shell

Beat Takeshi (a.k.a. Takeshi Kitano) has been cast in DreamWorks and Paramount's live action adaptation of Ghost in the Shell. The Japanese actor, director, and comedian will play Daisuke Aramaki, the head of Section 9.

Takeshi told Japanese outlet Cinema Today that he was not a fan of either anime or manga, but felt the character of Aramaki "gave off a unique presence," and that he was interesting in seeing what kind of film the adaptation turned out to be.

The last time Takeshi worked in Hollywood was on the 1995 Keanu Reeves film Johnny Mnemonic.

Ghost in the Shell stars Scarlett Johannsson as Motoko Kusanagi, Pilou Asbæk as Batou, and Michael Pitt as the cyberterrorist called the Laughing Man.

Ghost in the Shell is based Masamune Shirow's classic manga, which has been adapted into several anime films and TV shows. The story follows Motoko Kusanagi, field leader of Section 9, as she and her team defends the population of future Japan against cybercrime and cyberterrorism in an era where almost the entire population is augmented with cybernetics.

Snow White and the Huntsman director Rupert Sanders has signed on to direct. The film is scheduled for release on March 31, 2017.

Via ANN