Rumors of a Naruto live-action movie have been swirling for years, with some fans saying it would be the best thing to happen to the series since it was released and others claiming it would be impossible to pull off while still doing justice to the 700+ episodes’ worth of story. But impossible or not, Destin Daniel Cretton (Spider-Man: Brand New Day, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings) believes he’s up to the challenge and has officially been tapped to direct the film. That said, it’s not entirely smooth sailing, as industry insiders say a few changes to the original story are coming.
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According to one particular insider, Daniel Richtman, those changes are a good thing. Some fans, however, don’t agree. In an effort to “calm” people down, he tweeted a list of the changes, which includes making Naruto a history nerd (despite him still being a poor student), giving Sakura a more tragic backstory with the passing of her father, and a strained relationship with her mother, as well as toning down her crush on Sasuke (and even giving him a slight crush on her in return). But in an effort to truly assuage fans, Richtman does confirm that the film is slated to be “faithful, with a lot of scenes recreated almost shot-for-shot from the first arc of the manga. The changes are mostly character-related, and they don’t affect the story as much as you might think.”
Will These Changes Actually Make for a Stronger Story?
That depends on who you ask. Referencing Richtman’s claims that the changes are only character-related, one fan asked, “Then why change them? Just keep it like the source material; why is that hard to do? It’s already written and popular.” And it seems that the answer to that question is somewhere in the middle. Adapting a 700+ episode anime into a (potential) handful of films will take a lot of strategic cutting and pasting. Some things simply don’t work on film the same way that they do in animation, or in long-form storytelling.
That doesn’t mean every change will be an automatic win, and fans aren’t wrong to be concerned, especially about changes to Naruto, his personality, and the idea that a Jinchuriki is strictly a bloodline thing; let’s not forget that Gaara had no bloodline connection to Shukaku and was only made a jinchuriki thanks to his father’s experiments on his mother. And as for the changes to Sakura’s character, which essentially feel like an attempt to do away with her early character development, one fan seems to have the perfect solution: “If they wanna avoid Sakura coming across as a damsel, just highlight her strengths early, like her book-smart intellect & perfect chakra control, so she’s a tactical asset. Realizing that her intelligence hits a ceiling next to Naruto and Sasuke is a fundamental aspect of her character.”
Personally, I can see how some changes would translate better to film, but changes to Naruto’s personality and the Jinchuriki’s history never seem like the right move. Are there any changes you’re looking forward to (or dreading)? Drop them in the comments.
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