Shang-Chi's Destin Daniel Cretton is making a live-action Naruto movie

In what we can only think of, first and foremost, as an absolutely massive boon for the ever-struggling headband, gi, and other ninja cosplay accessory industries, Lionsgate has announced today that it’s putting a live-action Naruto movie into the works. Destin Daniel Cretton, who made a name for himself in the world of “martial arts, but there’s superpowers that make the martial arts actually look kind of less cool” films, in the form of Marvel’s Shang-Chi, will helm the adaptation of one of the planet’s biggest manga and anime series.

Naruto has been running, in one form or another, since 1999, when it was created by writer and illustrator Masashi Kishimoto. And while it would be horribly reductive—given the sheer amount of material that now exists in this universe, encompassing spin-offs, remakes, sequels, video games, alternate universes, etc.—to describe the series simply as “Ninja Harry Potter,” we’ll say this: If you would like to see a narrative about an abused orphan going to school, making friends, finding out he’s the chosen one, gaining increasing prominence and power, and eventually triumphing over both external evils and the dark secrets sealed inside himself, but he’s a ninja, then Naruto will certainly be able to accommodate those needs.

Given just how big Naruto is, this one was always, probably, inevitable—especially once Netflix’s live-action One Piece made a serious case that there is, in fact, a market for this kind of anime adaptation. Of course, it’s going to be a pretty serious challenge to condense a decent chunk of the 72 volumes of the original Naruto into a film script, but, hey: At least viewers of the film hopefully won’t have to worry about sitting through filler arcs this time.

[via THR]