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James Franco: Akira Manga Man! Exclusive!

James Franco: Akira Manga Man! Exclusive!

James Franco is in talks to star as the lead role Kaneda in the live action feature-film Akira, JustJared.com has exclusively confirmed.

The flick will be based off of anime artist Katsuhiro Otomo‘s six-volume cyberpunk manga (Japanese word for comics). The film is set in New Manhattan, where the leader of a biker gang saves his friend from a medical experiment.

Warner Bros. has tapped director Albert Hughes (The Book of Eli) to helm the project, along with Leonardo DiCaprio‘s production company Appian Way.

James, who is co-hosting the Academy Awards later this month with Anne Hathaway, unsurprisingly has been getting roles offered to him left and right. He also has the opportunity to replace Robert Downey, Jr. as the Wizard of Oz in the upcoming Disney movie Oz: The Great and Powerful. Director Sam Raimi will helm the Wizard of Oz prequel, which is based on L. Frank Baum‘s classic books.

WHAT DO YOU THINK James Franco will choose to star in — Oz or Akira?

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Credit: Kiyoshi Ota, Kevin Winter; Photos: Getty
Posted to: James Franco, Leonardo DiCaprio