'Lone Wolf and Cub' live-action adaptation gets writer; Justin Lin to direct

A screenshot from the film "Lone Wolf and Cub." Toho

Another acclaimed manga might be turned into a live-action film. Paramount Pictures is reportedly mounting a new adaptation of "Lone Wolf and Cub" and is reported to have Justin Lin helm the directorial duties.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Paramount is collaborating with Lin and screenwriter Andrew Kevin Walker for a long-term deal. Lin is known for directing parts three to six of the "Fast & Furious" movies as well as "Star Trek Beyond."

It is interesting to note is that another director, Darren Aronofsky, previously tried to get the live-action adaptation of the manga off the ground but encountered issues with rights to the story.

The classic manga series was written and created by Kazuo Koike. It follows the story of a fallen assassin who must escape along with his infant son when the rest of his family is murdered. The father and son set out an epic journey of revenge as the father passes his vengeful will and assassin skills to his son.

The manga had 28 volumes from 1970 to 1976, and a series of six films were shown in Japan between 1972 and 1974. The movies became well-known for their cool action sequences and shocking gore.

"Lone Wolf and Cub" also influenced several movies, books and comics. One of them was the graphic novel "Road to Perdition" which was also turned into a movie in 2002.

No doubt that Paramount is looking at the planned movie with sequels in mind. With almost 9,000 manga pages to work on, the studio should not encounter any problems to plot out future installments of the film.

No word yet on who is in the running for the parts of the father and the son but given that Paramount received backlash with whitewashing the cast of "Ghost in the Shell," the movie company might cast Japanese or Japanese-Americans to play the lead roles.

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