Hollywood to remake 1993 Japanese film based on popular manga “Lone Wolf and Cub”

SP International Pictures announced it will remake one of several classic Japanese films based on the beloved manga epic, Lone Wolf and Cub.

Lone Wolf and Cub, the feudal era samurai revenge epic, is practically a holy tome for manga geeks – although, at a total of 8,700 pages over 28 volumes, it’s more than possible a lot of manga fans out there are just pretending to have read it to preserve their cred. Originally published beginning in 1970 in Japan, the manga began syndication in North America starting in 1987, right around the anime boom that sparked the interest of a lot of the currently-30-something fans of Japanese pop culture.

It’s certain to ring as good news for that demographic – typically the most cherished of audiences to entertainment companies because of their sweet, sweet disposable income – that one of a couple of the Japanese produced Lone Wolf and Cub film adaptations will be getting a brand new remake thanks to SP International Pictures.

SP International, headed by producer Steven Paul, is the same production house responsible for the upcoming Ghost in the Shell live action adaptation. Many fans and activists alike, it should be noted, are none too pleased with the direction that production is going – as SP International has cast a white woman in the role of the anime’s Asian protagonist – but Paul insists that Lone Wolf and Cub will feature a “mostly” Japanese cast. Let’s remember, though, that another feudal Japan samurai epic featured many Japanese actors but still cast Tom Cruise as literally The Last Samurai, so Lone Wolf and Cub may not be without its own controversies.

Shooting is set to begin in 2017. We’ll be sure to follow up if the crew decides to cast Matt Damon or something as protagonist Ogami Itto.

Source: Variety Japan
Images: Amazon

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