Legendary’s ‘Gundam’ Finds Screenwriter in Brian K. Vaughan
Legendary is moving forward with their planned adaptation of Sunrise’s Mobile Suit Gundam franchise, the brand that popularized mecha anime, manga, and toys across Japan and internationally. The live-action take on the franchise will be penned by Brian K. Vaughan.
Deadline reports that Vaughan (best known for writing seven episodes of Lost, the first two episodes of Marvel’s Runaways, and several critically-acclaimed comic books such as Y: The Last Man and Saga) will take a crack at a Gundam script in time for the 40th anniversary of the long-running franchise. The brand has undergone several different continuities and incarnations with tons of content produced annually; and now, it’s making the jump to the big screen with a big-budget, live-action format. Producer Cale Boyter will oversee development on the project, though a director has not yet been selected.
Audiences who caught Ready Player One will be vaguely familiar with the design of the RX-78-2 Mobile Suit Gundam (pictured above), as it was not only the original Gundam, but it also appeared as one of the giant mechas that fought in the explosive, pop-culture-filled final battle between the corporate suits and the players of OASIS. While it only appeared in the movie for about a minute of screen time, that was more than enough proof that the design could look stunning in a CGI-heavy landscape.
Yoshiyuki Tomino’s iconic anime created a world in which military conflicts were resolved by means of building massive “Mobile Suits”, gigantic human-controlled mecha that were capable of carrying some of the most dangerous weapons constructed by mankind to fight intergalactic battles across any terrain. The idea was considered revolutionary at the time of the franchise’s start, since up until that point, most machines in anime and manga were presented as autonomous robots instead of human-controlled sets of armor. While there has yet to be a Western-made mecha movie to be a true box office hit (no, Hasbro and Paramount’s Transformers movies do not count), it seems appropriate that the grandfather of all mecha franchises could serve as another opportunity.
Gundam is in development at Legendary Pictures.
Grant Davis is a freelance writer who has covered entertainment news for more than seven years. His articles have frequently appeared in Star Wars News Net as well as as other entertainment-related websites. As someone who grew up on Star Wars and comic book movies, he’s completely thrilled with the current era of genre entertainment.
