Warner Bros. Brings Their ‘Death Note’ to America

Posted by Robin Ruinsky (robin@filmschoolrejects.com) on May 1, 2009

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Here’s a concept for you. A college student stumbles upon a misplaced “death note” and acquires the power to kill simply by writing a person’s name on the page while thinking of the person. How’s that for power? That could be someone you’d want to keep as a friend. Or an employee whose request for a raise you wouldn’t want to turn down.

It’s the premise of the 13 volume Japanese manga best seller “Death Note” and it looks like it will be coming to a theater near you in a live action adaptation. Warner Bros. has picked up the rights and will use the first three books written by Tsugumi Ohba with illustrations by Takeshi Obata, published by Shueisha Inc. as the basis for the film.

Warner Bros. Pictures previously made three Japanese language Death Note films, but the new versions will be inspired by the original manga.

Roy Lee and Doug Davison of Vertigo will produce with Brian Witten and Dan Lin’s Lin Pictures. Screenwriters Charley and Vlas Parlapanides, War of the Gods, Live Bet, will be penning the screenplay.

No cast has been announced.

So, tell us, is this something you want to see? Anyone want that kind of power?

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_Christopher_M

sounds like another in a long line of Asian horror adaptations that don't translate well into English versions....or the wrong people get a hold of it and we get another 3 Grudge movies...

Prush

The Anime on adult swim is alright, but incredibly confusing. American audiences will not understand this at all. Too many similar names, too many crazy characters and too much going on that you miss or not understand a small section and you are gone.

YazzyDream

lol. I think you need to watch the show from the beginning. Don't miss episodes. It's a very solid story. It's like reading a book but skipping over 10 chapters if you miss one episode.

_Christopher_M

I just wish they'd focus more on getting Ninja Scroll and Akira finished first before more of these adaptations

Chris

While I've never watched the anime, or read the manga, I enjoyed the live action films (thanks to an obsessed nephew). If time and care is taken with this adaption, then this could be something pretty cool. As long as they don't get somebody like Zac Efron to play Light, and don't go all politically correct with L, not having him be a sugar freak because it'll give him diabetes.

I think the story can be adapted for an American audience. Wether or not that's the case however, remains to be seen.

Isamu

Hey, Chris your obsessed nephew is a cool person for loving Death Note, does he love to watch the anime or read the Manga?

Isamu

I don't even care if the movie sucks, I will go see it no matter what because its Death Note, which means a movie about Death Note that is closer to the Manga which I love so much to read, so please make the movie for sure but try to make it as good as possible for a American film that I hope will be some what of a box office blocker buster when it comes out.

enn ardi

I'd write it off as another line of poor Asian adaptions if it werent for the fact that warner brs is pickin up a couple boys from vertigo to produce. The story line is right up vertigo's ally and id like to see how they translate this for an american audience.

Wtfsk

I'm glad Warner Bros picked it up, it could be worse- Fox could have picked it up.

I'm excited for this, the Japanese ones were...not that good, to say the least.

Kafloom

God, after Hollywood messed up other Japanese series like Speed Racer and Dragonball, I REALLY hope they do this right. The Japanese live-action ones were alright, but not great - I'll be interested to see what kind of flavor these guys put into it, and how they'll choose to depict the shinigami (an actor in makeup or CGI).

Warner Bros. Brings Their ‘Death Note’ to America

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