Summary

twist the level ofNarutointo a hot - activeness flick will inevitably hazard diluting the slap-up strength of Masashi Kishimoto ’s original Zanzibar copal and manga serial publication . AlongsideDragon BallandOne Piece , Narutois one of the few Japanese Zanzibar copal and manga franchises with mainstream international collection , so Hollywood ’s long - standing interest in alive - actionNarutomoviecomes as no surprise . Reports ab initio surfaced in 2015 , withLionsgate larn the rights for aNarutomovie . The projection then turned suspiciously quiet as one live - activeness anime adaptation after another leaven as successful as Jiraiya ’s try at coming onto Tsunade .

Surprisingly , November 2023 brought a rareupdate on the live - actionNarutomovie , with Tasha Huo reported as signing on to spell the project . With the rack finally starting to plough on Hollywood’sNarutomovie and the reputation of live - activeness anime adjustment now vastly improved thanks to Netflix’sOne Piece , persuasion are beginning to turn toward what Kishimoto ’s ninja epic might actually look like on the big CRT screen . One immediate problem a resilient - actionNarutomoviewould face , however , come merely from prefer for the feature - duration data format in the first place .

Naruto has some implausibly powerful fighters , with the strongest of all time possessing abilities that are downright preposterous in their strength .

Naruto in Sage of Six Paths Mode and Sasuke With Sharingan

The Naruto Anime’s Greatest Strength Is Its Large Cast Of Characters

The overarching moral message at the nitty-gritty ofNarutoconcerns friendship and teamwork . It ’s the story of how a maligned ninja make bond with those he encounters , and how those attachment turn into a powerful weapon system against evil forces that assay to separate and oppress . This message only succeeds because Masashi Kishimoto ’s manga and its gum anime adaptation work hard to create a vivacious and layered cast of character beyond Naruto Uzumaki himself . There are exceptions . Kishimoto is frequentlycriticized for his handling ofNaruto ’s female characters , and those misgivings are not without merit . Nevertheless , Narutodoes blow a monumental roll of entrancing - if predominantly male - figures with well - develop personalities .

The likes of Gaara , Itachi , and Neji are never promote to master character reference status inNaruto , and all three are completely absent for heavy chunks of the story . Even so , each feels graphic and relatable - as relatable as a brain ninja who slaughtered his kinsfolk can sense , at least - and the deepness of their characterization leads to some ofNaruto ’s very best and most rip - jerking moment . Numerous other ninja who only appear for short bursts could make standardized claims , and it is this salmagundi of salient and impinge on shinobi that has turnedNarutointo an gum anime and manga classic .

The Live-Action Naruto Movie Risks Ruining What Made The Anime Great

The large trouble theNarutomovie faces is how to accommodate the anime and manga ’s compelling supporting players within the linguistic context of a two - hour tale . Live - actionNaruto ’s priority will be establishing the effect quartet of Naruto Uzumaki , Sasuke Uchiha , Kakashi Hatake , and Sakura Haruno , as well as theNarutomovie ’s cardinal scoundrel , whether that be Zabuza of the Seven Swordsmen or Orochimaru . Giving those five characters the same storey of characterization they have in the anime and manga - and perhaps improving upon it in Sakura ’s fount - is already a Juubi - sized challenge . No matter how well - write , aNarutomovie will not have distance to do DoJ to its side characters .

That create a Brobdingnagian problem , because calculate on which chapters are adapted , Gaara , Itachi , and Neji could all feasibly play roles in the firstNarutomovie . With so many ninja to feature and so picayune clip to feature them , important and darling character may be reduced to bite - component part , cameo , or minor roles that scarcely fret the surface . One might argue that these characters could be explore in ulterior entries , but anyNarutosequels that do arise will have new characters of their own to uprise - the likes of Jiraiya , Obito , Killer B , etc .

Naruto’s Movie Ensemble Problem Had A Really Simple Solution

To nullify this potentially fatal pit , all Hollywood had to do was adaptNarutofor TV instead of the big screen - an progressively workable solvent for big - budget projects thanks to streaming service . Within an eight or ten - sequence season , Narutocould take a far stronger stab at fleshing - out its wider cast , and would fend a substantially respectable chance of capturing what do work so well in Masashi Kishimoto ’s anime and manga . One Pieceis the obvious example of this possibility in pattern . LikeNaruto , One Piecethrives on its eclectic , giant crop of character . AdaptingOne Piecefor TV meant each appendage of Luffy ’s Straw Hat crowd received at least one episode in the spotlight , while also leaving room for the likes of Koby and Garp .

One Pieceas a movie would have been a mussy disaster akin toDragonball Evolution , which infamously decimated its side characters into vague stereotypes that barely resembled the source material . The television social organization allowed Netflix to introduceOne Piece ’s characters at the same tread as the gum anime and manga . The live - actionNarutomovie will not have that luxury , and will in all likelihood be forced into decide whether to except characters like Shikamaru , Neji , and Itachi , or to admit them superficially without any deepness or substance . Neither sounds likable .

Naruto in a battle pose, throwing a kunai while he holds three more. Behind him, Kaguya and Madara can be seen.

Itachi Uchiha

Naruto and the Konoha 11 in Naruto

Naruto grabs Neji’s arm in Naruto Shippuden

Mackenyu as Zoro vs. Steven John Ward as Dracule Mihawk in One Piece season 1