Akira May Be Returning to U.S. Theaters Soon

Akira is one of the most influential anime films of all-time, and it remains a favorite movie with buffs around the world. The rich post-apocalyptic story has prompted hundreds of debates since its debut, and director Katsuhiro Otomo outdid himself with this project’s vision. And according to a recent update, it seems Akira will be returning to U.S. theaters sooner rather than later despite the pandemic.

The fandom turned its eyes to Akira after AMC Theaters posted a page detailing an upcoming release of the film. The placeholder page says Akira will screen in U.S. theaters starting September 24, 2000. The feature will carry an R-rating and run for just over two hours. You can read the chain’s synopsis of the Akira below:

“Akira takes place in 2019. 31 years after being destroyed during World War 3, Tokyo (now ‘Neo-Tokyo’) has been rebuilt and is a thriving metropolis. Shotaro Kaneda is the leader of a biker gang. His friend Tetsuo is injured in an accident and taken to a top-secret government facility. He develops telekinetic powers but decides to use them for evil rather than good. He has the same powers as Akira, the force that destroyed Tokyo in 1988. It now appears that history will repeat itself.”

This announcement is being called horrifically appropriate by fans of the hit film. Akira is a dark film filled with endgame imagery and post-apocalyptic truth bombs. In the past year, global unrest has become more apparent than ever in the real world, and Akira fans continued to point out the similarities between 2020 and Otomo’s film. From a pandemic to social injustice and rioting, Akira covers it all, so it is hard to overlook the coincidence here.

This film will not be the first to hit theaters since the pandemic shut down cinemas across the United States and much of the world. Recently, the U.S. began a soft reopening of select theaters around the country to show previous films like Inception. As September comes forward, new movies are expected to hit theaters with projects like The New Mutants and Tenet set for releases.

Would you be willing to check out Akira in theaters this fall? Or are you good to delay your next trip to the movies? Let me know in the comments or hit me up on Twitter @MeganPetersCB to talk all things comics and anime!