User:IAmNMFlores/sandbox
| Evangelion | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Chloé Zhao |
| Screenplay by |
|
| Story by |
|
| Based on | Neon Genesis Evangelion and The End of Evangelion by Hideaki Anno |
| Produced by | |
| Starring | |
| Cinematography | Sayombhu Mukdeeprom |
| Edited by |
|
| Music by | |
Production companies | |
| Distributed by |
|
Release date |
|
Running time | 168 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $175 million |
Evangelion is an upcoming American science fiction film co-written, edited, and directed by Chloé Zhao. The film serves as a live-action "reimagining" of the 1995-96 anime series Neon Genesis Evangelion and its 1997 alternate ending follow up film The End of Evangelion. It features an ensemble cast, starring Ferdia Walsh-Peelo, Rachel Zegler, Hunter Schafer, Jessie Buckley, Jack Quaid, Ashton Sanders, Léa Seydoux, Ben Mendelsohn, and Will Yun Lee.
Evangelion is set to be released in North America by Columbia Pictures and internationally by Warner Bros. Pictures. It is set to be the first of a planned trilogy.
Premise
[edit]Years following the cataclysmic event known as the "Second Impact", humanity has placed their survival against the monstrous beings, dubbed "Archangels", in the hands of the gigantic mecha peacekeepers, named "Evangelion", piloted by young adults struggling with their mental health struggles. As the war against the creatures sees an end, along with the arrival of a new pilot, the pilots' mentality begins deteriorating leading them to finally face their inner demons.
Cast
[edit]- Ferdia Walsh-Peelo as Shawn Ikari-Sorkin: The shy pilot of EVA 3.0, and suffers from depression and suicidal thoughts; based off of Shinji Ikari.
- Rachel Zegler as Ashley "Ash" Langley: The extroverted pilot of EVA 2.0, and suffers from anxiety and Tourette syndrome; based off of Asuka Langley Soryu.
- Hunter Schafer as Rey: The quiet pilot of EVA 1.0, diagnosed with Asperger's syndrome and has a prosthetic robotic arm; based off of Rei Ayanami.
- Schafer also plays "Yer", the 7th Archangel seemingly representing "Lust".
- Jessie Buckley as Martha Krasinski: Commander of the Evangelion task force, who has a burn scars from the Second Impact and suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder; based off of Misato Katsuragi.
- Jack Quaid as Reese Kale: Lab Manager at N.E.R.V., and Martha's ex-fiance who suffers from anorexia; based off of Ryoji Kaji.
- Ashton Sanders as Trey Stanfield: Shawn's former classmate who is chosen to pilot EVA-Prime 1.0; based off of Toji Suzuhara.
- Léa Seydoux as Reine Alba: Lead electronic technician at N.E.R.V. and Martha's best friend who suffers from bipolar disorder; based off of Ritsuko Akagi.
- Ben Mendelsohn as Kane Franklin: Vice President of N.E.R.V.; based off of Kōzō Fuyutsuki.
- Will Yun Lee as Gendo Ikari-Sorkin: President of N.E.R.V., and Shawn's step-father who experiences religious delusions; based off of Gendo Ikari.
- Gemma Chan as Maya Ibuki: Electronic technician at N.E.R.V.
- Yana Perrault as Martha Huggins: Electronic technician at N.E.R.V.; based off of Makoto Hyuga.
- Sam Claflin as Seamus Abraham: Electronic technician at N.E.R.V.; based off of Shigeru Aoba.
- Owen Teague as Ken Adams: Trey's best friend; based off of Kensuke Aida.
- Elena Kampouris as Helena Harting: Trey's girlfriend; based off of Hikari Horaki.
- Mackenzie Davis as Yasmine Ikari-Sorkin: Shawn's late mother and Gendo's late wife; based of of Yui Ikari.
- Rosa Salazar as Katrina Langley: Ash's late mother who suffered from schizophrenia; a composite character based off of Kyoko Zeppelin Soryu and Naoko Akagi.
Production
[edit]Earlier efforts
[edit]Development of a live-action film adaptation of Gainax's anime series Neon Genesis Evangelion was announced in May 2003 by ADV Films, who held worldwide rights to the series outside of Asia and Australia (prior to Netflix and GKIDS' acquisition in later years), and Universal Studios would be the American distributor. The film was to be produced by ADV, Gainax, and Weta Workshop Ltd.. Its release was projected to occur at any time ranging from as early as 2009 to as late as 2015. In December 2005, Fortune Magazine reported in an article about ADV Films that it had raised "about half of the $100 million to $120 million" needed to produce the film.[1] It's not completely clear if this money was raised by ADV alone or if part of that amount was contributed by Gainax.
The project was long considered to be in "development hell", as a director had yet to become available or announced officially. In a panel discussion at Tekkoshocon on April 2, 2006 featuring Matt Greenfield and wife Tiffany Grant, many aspects of the project were revealed.[2] Greenfield recalled that Weta approached ADV about a live-action Eva movie after completing work on The Lord of the Rings trilogy, but work was delayed by King Kong (2005) and The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (2005). It was revealed that three described "A-list" directors and several celebrities had approached the project, rather than the other way around, and the slug script was written by a writer of several other well-known science fiction movies (though this is subject to be rewritten and tailored to the director's vision). Greenfield also reiterated his belief that they did not want to make the movie for profit, but because they wanted to do it and have it done it right, and promised effort toward a trilogy of Evangelion films (as opposed to trying to condense the story into one film and lose vast amounts of material). Early rumors included the existence of the "A-6 treatment"; short for Alpha-6, this supposed early script treatment was rumored to have primarily adaptated the first six episodes of the anime, akin to Evangelion: 1.0 You Are (Not) Alone (2007). It received some controversy, as the episodes said to be adapted don't include the character Asuka Langley Soryu, who plays a major role in the anime overall.
Beyond these official announcements and some concept art produced by Weta, little or no more information about the film(s) had been made available. In 2005, Weta updated its official website, adding a section which featured all of its previously released Evangelion concept art labeled with the original Japanese character names as well as several references to Tokyo 3, cited as "New Tokyo".[3]
Development
[edit]In January 2022, Deadline Hollywood reported that Legendary Pictures purchased the live-action film production rights, splitting the distribution rights to Sony Pictures Releasing's Columbia Pictures domestically and Warner Bros. Pictures internationally. The film was reported as being in "active development". In April that same year, Chloé Zhao was hired as director, and was set to co-write with Hunter Schafer who impressed Zhao with her knowledge on the anime's lore and writing on the Euphoria TV special "Fuck Anyone Who's Not a Sea Blob" (2021).
Casting
[edit]Initially, several parties have stated that one of the goals of the production is to cast children of ages appropriate to their roles and then cast adults who will be able to work well with them. Tiffany Grant, who voiced Langley Soryu in the English dub of the anime, stated through interviews and self-published articles, that the film would feature a cast "mostly of European descent," as well as mentioning ADV's toying with the idea of giving the other English dub actors cameos in the film.[4]. Not long after Grant's statements, concept art produced by Weta Workshop was released featuring character "slug names" such as "Kate Rose" (in lieu of Asuka Langley Soryu), "Ray" (Rei Ayanami), and "Susan Whitnall" (Misato Katsuragi). Richard Taylor, head of Effects and Creatures at Weta Workshop, publicly expressed his belief at the 2006 Supanova Pop Culture Expo in Brisbane that the film should have a predominantly Asian cast in order to work effectively in the international market.[5]
In October 2022, Schafer, Ferdia Walsh-Peelo, and Rachel Zegler were first announced as part of the cast, with Jessie Buckley, Jack Quaid, Ashton Sanders, Ben Mendelsohn, and Will Yun Lee were revealed throughout the rest of the month.
Writing
[edit]Zhao and Schafer collaborated on the earlier drafts of the screenplay, with the latter claiming much of its difficulty was in squeezing much of "the story into a single film when its told so perfectly across 26 episodes", but thanked Zhao who was "not as big as a fangirl as [Schafer]" who was able to trim and streamline the material. They both sought to preserve the ambiguousness of the source material, while providing a separate interpretation of its themes.
Emily Carmichael was hired for the final rewrites, as Zhao and Schafer wanted to focus on other duties and had trouble with studio notes. Carmichael was credited for "putting the puzzle together" on the script. She later confirmed she cut out Kaworu Nagisa from earlier drafts, and redubbed the Angels as "Archangels".
Filming
[edit]Principal photography commenced in Los Angeles, California in February 2023. Zhao emphasized practical sets whenever possible, although the StageCraft soundstage, named the Volume, was used primarily inside many settings inside the N.E.R.V. headquarters. The aspect ratio includes a mix of 16:9 (the primary canvas), 21:9, 2:1, and 4:3, with the latter being exclusively presented with IMAX film cameras.
Zhao initially approached Hoyte van Hoytema for cinematography due to his experience with IMAX cameras, but he declined due to scheduling conflicts. Sayombhu Mukdeeprom was ultimately hired as director of photography, with Zhao explaining that his style helps "enhance the personal intimacy of the characters in visual form."
Release
[edit]Evangelion is set to be released theatrically in North America by Columbia Pictures and internationally by Warner Bros. Pictures.
Future
[edit]In June 2023, Zhao stated that if Evangelion performed well, there were two sequels planned: Evangelion Supremacy and The Last Evangelion. Shortly after, it was revealed that the former would introduce versions of Kaworu and Mari Illustrious Makinami. Schafer jokingly implied that lighthearted spinoffs were a possibility, akin to the numerous spinoff manga, games, and light novels of the original franchise.
References
[edit]- ^ "It's... Profitmón!" by Daniel Roth, December 12, 2005
- ^ "10 Years of Death and Rebirth" (Google video), Tekkoshocon 2006
- ^ Featured Project - Neon Genesis Evangelion, Official Site of Weta Workshop
- ^ "Notes About the Live Action Evangelion Movie" by Tiffany Grant
- ^ Richard Tayor Podcast, Supernova Pop Culture Expo 2006
External links
[edit]- Evangelion at IMDb
- eva.trivialbeing.net — Fan site collecting data on the live movie.
- The project page for the movie on Weta Workshop's website (only conceptual art is shown so far).
