Now that it has finally stumbled out of the development forest and emerged blinking into the greenlight of pre-production, Warner Bros.’ live-action remake of classic anime Akira is wasting no time trying to lock down cast members. The latest actors rumoured to be on the receiving end of offers? Gary Oldman and Helena Bonham Carter.
The team at Twitch has heard that Oldman and Carter – both big names, respected actors and well known to the Warners bods given their roles in the Harry Potter series – are being sought to play a colonel and Lady Miyako respectively.
From the sounds of Carter’s role, the original film’s setting of Neo Tokyo may yet be retained, though it could just be a fan-pleasing nod. For now, of course, this all remains in the world of rumour as neither actor is confirmed to be in negotiations.
The same is currently true for Tron Legacy’s Garrett Hedlund, who is apparently the frontrunner for the lead role of a biker gang boss who must deal with the apocalyptic fallout when his friend is kidnapped and used in a government experiment to tap his psychokinetic abilities to terrifying effect.
With Unknown’s Jaume Collet-Serra aiming to start directing from Steve Kloves’ script early next year, except plenty more Akira casting stories to start leaking out before long…