Fullmetal Alchemist is getting a live action movie in Japan, and the cast has been announced.
The location where the manga and anime take place is heavily inspired by Europe, but the entire cast will be Japanese. The movie is set to follow the plot of the source material very closely. The original story followed brothers Edward and Alphonse Elric after a transmutation gone wrong. In the accident, Edward lost his arm and leg while Alphonse’s soul was transferred into a suit of armor. The brothers traveled the world, searching for new forms of alchemy that would return their bodies to normal.
Ryosuke Yamada – a boy band star – will play Edward, which may seem like a strange casting choice, but the rest of the cast is comprised of more experienced actors who will hopefully bring the manga to life in a very real way.
The manga originally ran from 2002 to 2010 over 27 volumes. There have also been two anime adaptations. The first strayed from the plot of the anime because the manga had not yet finished, while the second attempt, titled Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood, was a straight adaptation of the source material and was much better received.
This isn’t the first live-action adaptation of an anime in Japan, but recent efforts have ben mixed.
Fullmetal Alchemist is set to release in Japan winter 2017.
