Lionsgate is finally moving ahead with a live-action adaptation of the popular Naruto series, with Marvel Cinematic Universe alum Destin Daniel Cretton helming the project.
The Naruto film will be based on the manga by Masashi Kishimoto, where a young ninja named Naruto Uzumaki strives to become the leading ninja in his village. Cretton, whose current credits include directing Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, its upcoming sequel, and the MCU TV series, Wonder Man, expressed great joy in joining the project.
“It was a true honor to meet Kishimoto-san in Tokyo and hear his expansive vision for his creation,” Cretton said in a statement. “We are very excited to collaborate and bring Naruto to the big screen.”
The news of Cretton’s involvement also comes after we learned last November that the filmmaker stepped down from directing another Marvel film, Avengers: The Kang Dynasty. That move likely freed up his schedule to pitch himself to the Naruto creator.
“When I heard of Destin’s attachment, it happened to be right after watching a blockbuster action film of his, and I thought he would be the perfect director for Naruto,” Masashi Kishimoto said in the same statement. “After enjoying his other films and understanding that his forte is in creating solid dramas about people, I became convinced that there is no other director for Naruto.”
He added, “In actually meeting Destin, I also found him to be an open-minded director who was willing to embrace my input, and felt strongly that we would be able to cooperate together in the production process. To put it simply, the live-action Naruto is bound to be a film with spectacular action and profound drama. I can’t help but be excited for it.”
The project is still in its early days, so no news yet on casting, let alone a release date.
