News
Masashi Kishimoto is Involved in Production on Lionsgate, Michael Gracey's Naruto Hollywood Film
posted on by Crystalyn Hodgkins
The Naruto and Boruto stage event at the Jump Festa event confirmed on Saturday that Lionsgate and director Michael Gracey (The Greatest Showman) are working on a live-action Hollywood film adaptation of Masashi Kishimoto's Naruto manga. The event also showed pre-production art, and revealed that Kishimoto himself is involved in the production.
The Tracking Board Hollywood news website had reported in July 2015 that Lionsgate had closed the rights to adapt the manga into a live-action film, and was in talks with Gracey to direct. Gracey has previously worked in visual effects and animation.
The Tracking Board also reported last year that Avi Arad (Hollywood's Ghost in the Shell, Gamba: Gamba to Nakama-tachi) and his son Ari Arad are producing the film at Arad Productions, and Erik Feig, Geoff Shaveitz and Kelly O'Malley are overseeing the film.
Kishimoto launched ninja manga in Shueisha's Weekly Shonen Jump magazine in 1999, and ended the series in November 2014. The manga has spawned the Naruto and Naruto Shippūden television anime series, OVAs, several anime films, spinoff manga, the Boruto sequel manga series, a series of novels, stage plays, and video games.
Source: Shonen Jump Twitter account
this article has been modified since it was originally posted; see change history