In the sixties and seventies, Americans were first exposed to anime, a sleek form of Japanese animation that upped the level of violence that westerners were used to, as well as bringing a higher degree of sophistication. Hot on the heels of a live-action ‘Gatchaman’ (or as some may know it better as, ‘Battle of the Planets’) movie that debuted over the summer in Japan, comes a US remake of ‘Star Blazers’ (which was originally called ‘Space Battleship Yamato’).

The film has been in development for several years now and it looks like the writer of the screenplay will also be its director. Oscar winner Chris McQuarrie has been signed on to helm the project.

McQuarrie is best known for his work as the scribe for such movies as ‘Jack Reacher’, ‘Jack the Giant Slayer’, ‘Edge of Tomorrow’, and ‘The Usual Suspects’, the latter he won an Oscar for in the category of Best Screenplay. He is also credited for delivering the first draft of the script for ‘The Wolverine’. As a director, McQuarrie worked on the Tom Cruise vehicle ‘Jack Reacher’, so big budget films are nothing new to him.

‘Star Blazers’ debuted on US TV in 1979, during the sci-fi craze created by ‘Star Wars.’ It detailed the story of a futuristic Earth where the planet’s atmosphere had been destroyed by an alien race and a space craft is sent into space to find a cure that will save humanity. (The original Japanese animated series actually predated ‘Star Wars.’ It was simply aired in the U.S. after ‘Star Wars’ became a phenomenon, much like ‘Battle of the Planets.’)

The film will be produced by Skydance Productions, who also crafted ‘World War Z’, ‘Star Trek Into Darkness’ and ‘G.I. Joe: Retaliation.’ They are also looking to reboot the ‘Terminator’ franchise so more on that as it develops. But thus far, that’s quite the healthy track record. Will they keep up the pace with this adaptation.

McQuarrie, Josh C. Kline, David Ellison and Dana Goldberg will produce, and Shouji Nizhizaki and Paul Schwake will be exec producers.

The film has just been announced, so there is likely no script ready, much less casting news. But we will keep you posted as this project progresses.

Are you a fan of the original animated series? Are you excepted by the prospect of a live-action movie? Feel free to sound off in the comment’s section.

Source Deadline