Seiji Muzushima, the director of the Fullmetal Alchemist anime had something to say when it comes to the upcoming live-action film adaptation. To quote, “It was a bad idea to only use Japanese actors.” He made this comment during a roundtable discussion with anime producers Tomoki Misawa (Urawa no Usagi-chan) and Hiroshi Kanemaru (Popin Q) at Nikufes (Meat Festival) Tokyo 2017.
He was asked to share his opinion about the upcoming film since the hype of the franchise has increased immensely in Japan. This discussion happened in the nationwide meat festival Nikufes is due to its recent incorporation with anime collaborations and anime song stage performances.
When regards to the casting choices, he said that “If you asked me whether I think the cast could pull it off, I’d say that no, they cant.” He also elaborated that “It’s hard for actors to capture the look and feel of the original manga”. Aside from making these comments related to the FMA movie, he also commented about the live-action movie adaptation of the Gintama movie saying that “Gintama just looked stupid.” and even the live-action adaptation of Terraformars to him was a bad adaptation of an awesome manga. “2D is freer than live action. You can express more with it.”
Although he has negative comments when regards to the upcoming FMA live-action movie, he was interested on the film’s 3DCG effects and he approves that live-action films have been broadening the appeals of manga and anime to the general public and continue to let the franchise grow as well.
The highly anticipated live-action adaptation of Hiromu Arakawa’s Fullmetal Alchemist manga will premiere in Japan on December 1. The film will be directed by Fumihiko Sori and promises to fans that the movie will be closely accurate to its original source.
To quote Sori, “I want to create a style that follows the original manga as much as possible. The cast is entirely Japanese, but the cultural background is Europe. However, it’s a style that doesn’t represent a specific race or country."
Ryosuke Yamada will play the role of Edward Elric, Dean Fujioka as Roy Mustang, and Tsubasa Honda as Winry Rockbell. Other cast and crew members include the following:
Fumiyo Kohinata as General Hakuro
Ryuta Sato as Maes Hughes
Misako Renbutsu as Riza Hawkeye
Natsuna as Maria Ross
Natsuki Harada as Gracia Hughes
Yo Oizumi as Shou Tucker
Jun Kunimura as Doctor Marco
Yasuko Matsuyuki as Lust
Kanata Hongou as Envy
Shinji Uchiyama as Gluttony
Kenjiro Ishimaru as Father Cornello
As a special treat for those who will be watching the movie on its premiere date in Japan, a “special-edition comic” created by the original manga creator Hiromu Arakawa will be given away until supplies last.
Source: Anime News Network