The most exciting aspect of Taika Waititi’s long-gestating live-action Akira adaptation is that it will be nothing like the 1988 movie it’s based on. Hollywood’s Akira movie remains among the most infamous examples of a project stuck in development hell. Katsuhiro Otomo’s seminal manga debuted in 1982, and the feature-length anime that followed six years later propelled Akira to iconic status across the world. Naturally, Akira became one of the very first Japanese anime and manga properties to catch the attention of western movie studios, and reports of adaptation plans first emerged in the 1990s.

https://screenrant.com/akira-movie-taika-waititi-anime-change-manga-op-ed/