Netflix is once again dipping into the live-action anime market. After giving a home to both stellar adaptations of Rurouni Kenshin and the not-so-stellar Death Note, the streamer is now boarding Legendary Entertainment's upcoming My Hero Academia feature film adaptation. Announced back in 2018, the adaptation brought aboard experienced anime adaptation director and Alice in Borderland creator Shinsuke Sato last year to direct the project with Obi-Wan Kenobi's Joby Harold writing the screenplay.
Created by Kohei Horikoshi in 2014, My Hero Academia swiftly became one of the most popular manga ever with an equally beloved series to boot featuring plenty of colorful characters. Since it started running in Shueisha’s Weekly Shōnen Jump magazine, the manga has sold a staggering 65 million copies including digital editions. It centers on Izuku Midoriya, a young man with dreams of being a superhero born into a world where 80% of all humans are given "quirks" or superpowers. His hopes of going to the prestigious superhero academy U.A. High School are nearly dashed when he is unfortunate enough to be born without a quirk of his own. After a chance encounter with the legendary hero All Might, essentially the in-universe equivalent to Superman, he finds himself back on the path to becoming the greatest hero alive.
The My Hero Academia anime is still going strong, now well into its sixth season. It's also seen the release of three spinoff movies My Hero Academia: Two Heroes, My Hero Academia: Heroes Rising, and My Hero Academia: World Heroes’ Mission. Details on Legendary's adaptation of the franchise are scarce, so there's no telling how much of Midoriya's story will be told in the film. It marks the English language debut for Sato though and has Legendary's Mary Parent and Alex Garcia producing.
Netflix Has Increasingly Cashed In On the World of Anime
With Legendary's My Hero Academia adaptation now set to appear on the streamer, Netflix continues investing in anime and shows based on the most popular series out of Japan. Notably, the platform has its own high-profile anime adaptation in the pipeline at the moment with a massive budget to boot - One Piece. Following in the wake of their disastrous Cowboy Bebop series, Netflix is working directly with the manga's creator Eiichiro Oda to bring the long-running series to life as accurately as possible. Compared to other streamers, they've practically cornered the market on anime adaptations, and adding Legendary's new film will only solidify their grasp.
As of right now, there's no word on who else is involved or when the My Hero Academia adaptation could release. Toho Co. will also release the film theatrically in Japan. In the meantime, check out Crunchyroll's trailer for Season 6 of the anime below.