James Franco in talks for Hughes Brothers’ live-action Akira adaptation

Scene from the Akira 1988 anime adaptation
Scene from the Akira 1988 anime adaptation

James Franco is in talks to play Kaneda in the live action film adaptation of Akira, according to JustJared.

Akira will be based on Katsuhiro Otomo’s six-volume cyberpunk manga, which was already adapted into a cult classic anime film in Japan. The story will be set in “New Manhattan”, where the leader of a biker gang saves his friend from a medical experiment.

Warner Bros. has tapped director Albert Hughes (The Book of Eli) to helm the project, with Leonardo DiCaprio’s production company Appian Way.

Franco, who is co-hosting the Academy Awards later this month with Anne Hathaway, also has the opportunity to replace Robert Downey, Jr. as the Wizard of Oz in the upcoming Disney movie Oz: The Great and Powerful. Director Sam Raimi will helm the Wizard of Oz prequel, which is based on L. Frank Baum’s classic books.