Ninjas, get ready: A live-action Naruto has finally seen some movement. The manga and anime adaptation has found its writer almost ten years after being announced. Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings’ Destin Daniel Cretton is writing and directing the Lionsgate film, reports Variety, replacing previously announced Red Sonja screenwriter Tasha Hao and director Michael Gracey. Naruto creator Masashi Kishimoto sang Cretton’s praises during the announcement. “When I heard of Destin’s attachment, it happened to be right after watching a blockbuster action film of his, and I thought he would be the perfect director for Naruto. After enjoying his other films and understanding that his forte is in creating solid dramas about people, I became convinced that there is no other director for Naruto.â€
Naruto follows a young ninja who dreams of being a Hokage, the leader and protector of his village. With the success of One Piece on Netflix, live-action adaptations of extremely popular (and long) mangas are slowly being revived from development limbo. Or the development dojo; maybe the movies are just fighting to be the Hokage of the manga adaptations.