©Courtesy of Shueisha
Rick and Morty scribe Heather Anne Campbell announced yesterday that she is officially rewriting Sony’s One-Punch Man live-action movie, according to The Wrap. The scribe will reunite with Dan Harmon, the co-creator of the hit Adult Swim animated sitcom, on the film.
Campbell shared the news on X through an article she posted about the feature’s director, Justin Lin. The writer linked to the article and tweeted, “So I guess it’s official that I’m working on the One Punch Man movie. Let’s f–kin’ goooooooooo.”
The live-action film adaptation was first announced in 2020. Screenwriters Scott Rosenberg and Jeff Pinkner, who are known for co-penning Marvel’s 2018 Venom movie, were originally attached to scribe the upcoming feature.
Lin signed on to helm and produce One Punch Man two years later. Arad Productions’ Avi Arad and Ari Arad, who are known for producing and directing the Spider-Man and X-Men film franchises, are also producing the upcoming feature.
The One-Punch Man manga series that the movie will be based on was originally published as a web comic in 2009. The series was later republished in print in 2012. The collection now contains 26 volumes and is one of the best-selling mangas of all time.
Campbell’s co-writer, Harmon, has enjoyed a long career in penning comedy for both television shows and movies. Other projects that he’s worked on besides Rick and Morty are Community and the animated film Monster House.
Campbell is a popular comedic scribe and performer, as well. She’s also known for her regular appearances on Whose Line Is It Anyway and in live Los Angeles improv and sketch comedy. She also served as a writer on Saturday Night Live in 2010-11. She went on to serve as a co-executive producer for seasons six and seven of Rick and Morty in 2022-23.
The One-Punch Man live-action movie will join the recent increase in popularity in anime and manga adaptations. Those screen adaptations include Netflix’s live-action One Piece and Avatar: The Last Airbender shows.
The animated One-Punch Man series is now streaming on Hulu in the U.S. The show’s synopsis reads: Saitama is a guy who’s a hero for fun. After saving a child from certain death, he decided to become a hero, and trained hard for three years. Though he’s now so strong he can defeat any opponent with a single punch, lately he feels as if, in exchange for overwhelming power, he’s lost something even more important.”
The first season of the manga’s anime adaptation aired in Japan from October to December 2015. Viz Media and Daisuki both streamed the One-Punch Man television series outside of Japan as it aired. The anime premiered with an English dub on Adult Swim’s Toonami block in July 2016. Viz Media released the first season on home video in North America.
The second season began with a television special in April 2019, which was followed by the first episode’s premiere one week later. Viz Media acquired the master license to the second anime season, including digital streaming, TV broadcast, electronic sell-through, home media and merchandising rights for North America, Latin America and Oceania. The company streamed the show as a Hulu exclusive.
A third season of the One-Punch Man series was announced in August 2022. J.C.Staff is returning to animate the upcoming season of episodes.
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