- The Hollywood Reporter informs us that Cam Gigandet, better known for playing James in the 2008 Twilight film and perhaps less known for his upcoming role in 2011's Kid Cannabis (I kid you not), will be playing a role in the live-action adaptation of the South Korean manhwa Priest. It's not entirely clear which role he's playing as it goes unnamed and the description (the man who is in loved with the main character's niece) leaves it rather ambiguous, but I'm sure it'll be pretty cool.
- ICv2 interviews TOKYOPOP's John Parker, amidst growing concerns online that along with the manga company's recent price increase, the actual print quality of the books has gone down.
- Via Simon Jones at Icarus Publishing: Dark Horse has actually revealed some rough sales numbers for much of its manga titles in PDF form. Some of it is surprising (I thought Kurogane Corpse Delivery Service would be selling better), some of it isn't (top title: Lone Wolf & Cub), but it certainly adds some interesting perspective for those of us who have less sense of the scale at which manga sells.
- Robert's Anime Corner Store notes that two Geneon rescues from FUNimation have been pushed back for two weeks: Kyo Kara Maoh! season 2 (pictured above) and Paradise Kiss Complete will street on July 21st rather than July 7th.
- Finally, ANN reports that a Japanese task force dedicated to eradicating wasteful spending by the government wants to cancel the ¥11.7 billion (~$120 million USD) plan to promote anime, manga, and other art forms by building a pop culture center, because it's “unnecessary.” Grants, art museums, parks, and other fun stuff isn't “necessary” here in the US, guys, but that doesn't mean the government should stop spending money on 'em.
Okay, I'm off for some yummy Thai food. Bee bee ell.
Figures the guys who want to cut back on spending are on the wrong side of the ocean (we could use them for sure!).