Cowboy Bebop (Live-Action) Forum

As you might imagine, MTV's Splash Page gets to spend way more time with Hollywood folks than I do, so they had a little chat with Keanu Reeves about the status of the live-action Cowboy Bebop film. First order of business? It will not have an insanely large budget, apparently. "There's a draft of the script, but the writer did such a great job [that] in order to make the movie, you would need half a billion dollars."

I'm glad to hear that what I assume is Peter Craig's script was so well-received, and only mildly disappointed that Hollywood can't shell out $500 million to make anime fans happy. (Why NOT? Haven't we been waiting? C'mon, you're already like, a quarter of the way there with Speed Racer's $120 million budget...) It makes me especially glad since it was Craig's vehemence about staying true to the story that made me more comfortable with the whole project.

Seriously though, I have to wonder...okay, $500 million would be a LOT even for a movie. But it'd be really cool if it wound up being up there in the highest-budget films ever (adjusted for inflation, that would be Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End, which was crap, and Cleopatra, which was not, both in the $315 million range). And then there's the four-part War and Peace flick of '68, which, adjusted for inflation, is estimated at $700 million.

I mean, the film would get extra attention in the press for being so expensive, and if Hollywood devoted that much budget, it would really feel like this film was being made as an epic for the whole world to really get into-- and since Bebop is arguably the best possible series to do this with (approachable but intelligent, dramatic but fun, etc), why not run with it?

Of course, that's easy for ME to say. I don't have to figure out how many millions to put into how many films. Besides, it's not like a huge budget guarantees a good flick (need I point at Pirates of the Caribbean 3 again?).

What do you think?

@DocHaus: Ahh, but (god help us) Dragonball Evolution made back more than it cost, although we're talking lower numbers-- and Bebop is a much more well-respected title, even if it's not quite as well-known in the US. Not to mention it didn't have Keanu Reeves starring in it.

I hope this movie isn't disappointing.  Just the thought of a Cowboy Bebop movie sounds awesome but, not all anime to big screen movies have been impressive so far.

It  makes me a little bit less apprehensive about the film if the draft is rumored to be amazing. But at the same time a lot of live-action adaptions of anime have sucked. Guess i'll have to just go see the movie.

I'll say about this what I said on ComicVine.
 
This doesn't need a re-writing. It needs an un-writing.

this movie will only be good if the entire bebop crew is involved and steve blum over dubs keanu's horrid stoner surfer voice.