There were rumors that the Akira project was completely dead after director Albert Hughes left, but Warner Bros. has quickly found a replacement. According to Variety, Jaume Collet-Serra, director of House of Wax, Orphan, and Unknown, will direct Akira, which is "being reenvisioned as a $90 million tentpole".
While Albert Hughes was on-board, significant work had been done during pre-production and actors were being approached. There is no word on how the script, New Manhattan movie setting, or casting will change now that Jaume Collet-Serra is on the project.
Jaume Collet-Serra had a number of projects previously lined up, including a new version of Dracula. We'd imagine that Akira will now take priority, but will provide an update on the status of his other projects when we hear more information. If you haven't seen Akira, here's a brief rundown of the plot:
“The story is set in the post-apocalyptic community of Neo-Tokyo. Tetsuo is a fiercely individualistic member of a scroungy motorcycle gang. The despotic authorities, the robot-like police, and even the cycle gang pursue Tetsuo when he’s bombarded with a new, insidious energy source that has rendered him telekinetic.”
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