Warner Bros. Pictures, which had held the rights to a live-action version adaptation of the manga since 2002, has repeatedly struggled to get production off the ground over various concerns, leaving the project in development hell.
[1] In the 1990s, following the release of the 1988 anime film, Sony Pictures Entertainment obtained the rights to the Akira manga series with the intent of creating a live-action adaptation.
[6] Attempts to make it more Westernized in order to draw American audiences, such as using the September 11 attacks as part of the establishing events instead of the atomic bombings, required fundamental changes to the story, which has subsequently drawn much criticism.
[8] Shortly after Warner Bros. acquired the rights, Stephen Norrington was slated to direct with James Robinson writing the screenplay and Dan Lin producing.
[10] Writer Gary Whitta had been told that Otomo had instructed those working on the film "basically to not be afraid to change things, that he wanted to see an original and different interpretation, not just a straight-up remake".
They used Whitta's script, with additional rewrites by Mark Fergus and Hawk Ostby, Albert Torres, and Steve Kloves, with plans to aim for a PG-13 rating for the two-part film.
In February, selections from an older draft of the screenplay were sent to casting agencies and circulated online, providing glimpses at changes the adaptation was making: the setting of Neo-Manhattan rather than Neo Tokyo, Kaneda and Tetsuo as siblings rather than friends, and an increased focus on the gang's use and trafficking of drugs.
[12] A full script, from a different draft than the casting sheets, leaked online later that year; though it was unclear precisely which screenwriter(s) had produced it, the scripts were criticized for deviating significantly from the source material: siblings Kaneda and Tetsuo were now in their early 30s and no longer bikers, Akira was a murderous evil child comparable to a horror villain, and Kei's supporting role was downplayed to a simpler love interest.
[6] In July 2011, Jaume Collet-Serra was hired to direct, with Steve Kloves providing revision work on a draft by screenwriter Albert Torres.
[27] Concept art for Robinson's 2008 production featured Chris Evans as Kaneda against Joseph Gordon-Levitt as Travis (Tetsuo), though it is unclear if either actor was actually attached to the project.
Actors considered for Kaneda included James Franco, Robert Pattinson, and Keanu Reeves;[39] Garrett Hedlund emerged as the frontrunner for the role and began negotiations in November.
For his production, Waititi has asserted an intention to cast Asian-American teenagers to play the leads to avoid concerns over whitewashing, and preferred lesser-known actors for the roles.