Naoki Urasawa’s anime series Monster, a psychological horror-thriller, aired in Japan in 2006 and in the U.S. beginning in October 2009. The series was adapted from the 18-volume manga of the same name in which brain surgeon Dr. Kenzo Tenma loses his social standing and his fiancee after choosing to save the life of a boy named Johan Liebert over the life of Mayor Roedecker of Dusseldorf. Years later, Johan turns up again as a devilish serial killer, and Dr. Tenma takes it upon himself to track down his former patient.
In early 2013, it was announced that director Guillermo del Toro, the man behind Pacific Rim and Hellboy, would be working on a live-action adaptation of Monster on HBO. Unfortunately, as of this year, it seems HBO will not go through with the deal. Del Toro will pitch the adaptation to other sources, and states “We finished writing a couple of the episodes, and so we have a sampler… very likely that will happen sometime next year.”
HBO may not be interested, but fan support for a live-action Monster adaptation is far from stagnant. Crunchyroll user thecactaur insists “If any of the HBO higher ups knew the incredible story of Monster they would take it in a heartbeat.” Many supporters are pointing to Netflix as a potential buyer for the series or suggesting a Kickstarter project. With multiple options and other series seeing their own live-actions, Monster’s future hasn’t darkened just yet.
