I'm always a bit skeptical when I hear that Hollywood wants to make a live-action version of a Japanese anime.  Though I love the big screen Speed Racer more than any grown man should, I think it's far too easy for things to get lost in translation when adapting a long-running animated series from another country.  However, it seems that Hollywood is up to the challenge.  A Dragonball Z movie hits theaters next year, Leonardo DiCaprio is looking to produce a live-action version of Akira, and M. Night Shyamalan is still working on adapting the anime-inspired American series Avatar: The Last Airbender.  There's no telling how these projects will turn out, but if they don't make more money than Speed Racer this fad will burn out quickly.

The latest anime series getting ready for an American revamp is Robotech.  The Hollywood Reporter has announced that Smallville creators Alfred Gough and Miles Millar will write the script for a live-action Robotech movie, which could hit theaters within the next few years.

Robotech has a fairly simply premise, which is likely the reason Hollywood is interested in the story.  The series takes place in a time when mankind has developed giant robots using the technology from an alien spacecraft that crashed on a South Pacific island.  When aliens invade Earth, humanity is forced to use the technology to save the planet.  The setup can be boiled down to "robots vs. aliens," though after various Robotech series, animated movies and spin-offs the mythology is much more complex than that.

The film is being produced by actor Tobey Maguire, who's best known for playing Spider-Man on the big screen.  The live-action version will be an updated re-imagining of the original Robotech universe, with new designs for the robots and a different timeline.  The original series took place in 2009, but the movie will be set in the distant future.  Maguire said that he hopes to produce a "sophisticated, smart and entertaining film" that will introduce new audiences to the Robotech mythology.

This is the first project Alfred Gough and Miles Millar have signed up for since leaving Smallville earlier this year.  In my opinion, the magic the writers cooked up for Smallville still hasn't translated to their work on the big screen.  The duo is responsible for scripting such abominations as The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor, Herbie Fully Loaded and Showtime.  However, they also received a story credit on Spider-Man 2, so let's hope that Robotech turns out more like Spidey and less like Herbie.


- Don Williams, BuddyTV Staff Writer
Source: The Hollywood Reporter
(Image courtesy of Harmony Gold USA)