Famed comic book creator and New York Times Bestselling author Brian K. Vaughan has been tapped to write the screenplay for Legendary’s live-action Gundam adaptation. Based on the popular mecha anime and science fiction media franchise, the film will be co-produced with Japan’s acclaimed animation and production studio, Sunrise.
Next month marks the 40th anniversary of Mobile Suit Gundam, the series that launched Gundam as both a media and toy franchise. That 1979 series, created and directed by Yoshiyuki Tomino, was initially cooly received before winning over an impassioned fan following reruns and a popular tie-in toy line.
The appeal of a big-budget Hollywood adaptation of the IP is clear. It’s sort of like a more acclaimed version of Transformers, and Legendary will be hoping to get moving quickly on the adaptation.
Vaughan’s involvement is part of his three-year overall deal with the studio. Having created comic books such as Ex Machina and Runaways, he’s a great choice to adapt this heightened property to the silver screen. However, it remains to be seen how quickly Gundam will move ahead. Vaughan has plenty of pending big-budget screenplays in the works.
They include the new Silver Surfer movie, and the reboots of M.A.S.K. and Visionaries. He’s also got an adaptation of his own comic book series, Y: The Last Man, in the works, though that is a TV project expected to arrive on FX sometime next year. But essentially, there’s a lot on Vaughan’s plate. How quickly he will be able to finish Gundam remains to be seen.
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