It seems like some truly unexpected news has dropped on the anime fandom today. Amidst the ongoing pandemic, Sony Pictures has confirmed it will be making a live-action adaptation of One-Punch Man, the iconic superhero series overseen by ONE and Yusuke Murata. The beloved manga-turned-anime will be making its Hollywood debut sooner rather than later… and fans have a lot to say about that.
Videos by ComicBook.com
Over on social media, fans exploded when the news went live. ComicBook.com has learned from the studio that Scott Rosenberg and Jeff Pinkner have been tasked with writing the script. Arad Production will oversee production on the film, and the company has a track record with superhero films. In the past, it has worked on the Spider-Man films and the X-Men movies as well as Iron Man. Now, these creators will team up to bring Saitama to life, and fans have questions about the production.
You can see just a sample of the responses below but do be warned; They are not the most optimistic by any means. One-Punch Man is slated to become the next of Hollywood’s live-action adaptations, and the industry doesn’t have the greatest reputation with the genre. Netflix hopes to turn that around with its TV series based on Cowboy Bebop as casting for the series was well-received. But when star John Cho was injured onset, production had to come to a halt even before the novel coronavirus caused production delays everywhere.
Not only do fans not have confidence in the adaptation but anime fans are particularly salty about one thing. Sony Pictures has been able to lock in a movie deal before an anime studio could. There has yet to be a feature-length movie inspired by the series in any medium. Sure, One-Punch Man has gotten OVAs here and there, but audiences have not gotten to see Saitama on the big screen. Many fans are asking for the hero to get an animated run in theaters first, but it seems like Sony Pictures might beat the anime industry to the punch.
So, what do you make of this unexpected announcement? Let me know in the comments or hit me up on Twitter @MeganPetersCB to talk all things comics and anime!
Abandon Ship
Direct Hit
Damn, they’re really going all out to make One Punch Man fans feels like garbage huh?
โ Seta Soujiro (@SSJSoujiro) April 21, 2020
First was that rushed and awful anime 2nd season, then it was that trash 3d game and now this, biggest oof ever…
Still Waiting on This One
Big Yikes
โLive-action One Punch Man movieโ
โ Julian | ๐น๐๐๐ ๐๐๐ ๐บ๐๐๐ ๐ซ๐๐๐ (@julianort15) April 21, 2020
Oh… pic.twitter.com/bHWc6NAAPl
The Brighter Side
Say It Ain’t So
L O L
Lol we all know they will
โ ๐ค๐พSAMURAI CHAMPLOO๐ค๐พ (@BraLazNdora) April 21, 2020
