Originally published August 24, 2017. Updated April 16, 2018.
Netflix’s upcoming Death Note is aiming to be a full-on franchise.
The adaptation of the classic manga and anime series is to hit Netflix screens on August 25. The director is hoping that the movie turns into a full-on franchise, and is in fact even planning for such an outcome.
Speaking to The Verge, director of the movie, Adam Wingard, said: “When I went to Netflix, I pitched it as a multiple-film series, because really, this is the tip of the iceberg. It also still works as a closed loop. I think the movie thematically says everything it needs to say in the context of this film. But there’s a lot of places to go with the characters and the background that’s only hinted at here through some esoteric symbolism. It’s purposely mysterious, and there are plenty of places to go with that. So I’d love to see where these characters go. Especially because everybody’s so damaged by the end of the film, which is a cool place for a comic-book movie to go, and not a conventional place to end.”
Whether or not Wingard will get his wish will depend on fan reaction and on how many tune into see it. Anime adaptations are no easy task.
We suggest you obey the rules. Based on the famous Japanese manga written by Tsugumi Ohba and Takeshi Obata, Death Note follows a high school student who comes across a supernatural notebook, realizing it holds within it a great power; if the owner inscribes someone’s name into it while picturing their face, he or she will die. Intoxicated with his new godlike abilities, the young man begins to kill those he deems unworthy of life.
Death Note is set to premiere on Netflix on August 25th.
