With the success of bothDeadpoolandLogan, doing R-rated adaptations seems to be an emerging trend. So far, this has largely been relegated to the world of comic book movies, but it looks like it may be expanding to the world of video game adaptations as well, assuming producerAdi Shankargets his way. So what video game does he want to turn into a violent, R-rated movie? Naturally, it isMega Man.
The producer, who worked on movies likeThe GreyandDredd, recently spoke with WPG about some of his currently in-the-works projects, as well as some things he would like to see happen in the future. It turns out that one thing he really wants to do is bringMega Manto the big screen, which is reasonable enough, given the popularity and longevity of thevideo game series. Only, he sees it as a “hard-R” movie. Here is what he had to say.
“I’d love to do a hard-R Mega Man.”
So, at least for now, this is just something he would like to do and isn’t actually working on at the moment. ButAdi Shankaris working a lot these days and it wouldn’t be that hard to believe he could maybe get thisMega Manmovie going at some point. Though it is hard to imagine what need there is for the movie to be R-rated, but since he didn’t elaborate on his idea or his take for theMega Manmovie, we can only wonder. He did say that he doesn’t have any interest in pursuing projects he doesn’t understand and that he only wants to develop projects based on things he loved as a kid. He takes things like this seriously.
“If I’m not a fan of something and I don’t organically understand what is cool about it, then I’m simply not going to get involved. Even though I have one foot in the door in Hollywood, I’m not trying torape and pillage culture for profit. I’m trying to take the things I loved as a kid and bring them to life in an interesting way.”
If nothing else, an R-ratedMega Manmovie would be interesting.Adi Shankarhas a history with doing gritty, R-rated versions of things. He is currently working on an animatedPower RangersTV show that is said to be more gritty and he also famously did some shorts that were very much a hard-R;Punisher: Dirty LaundryandPower/Rangers. Both of those shorts featured big-name talent and both of them were met with praise from fans in addition to some opposition from the rights holders, since they were done without permission. But these shorts have proved that he doesgritty and bloodyvery well. So maybe he really could pull off an R-ratedMega Manmovie?
In case you aren’t familiar,Mega Manstarted as a video game series back in 1987 and has spawned a ton of sequels and spin-offs over the years. To date, the series has sold more than 30 million copies worldwide. The story centers on an android named Rock, who was created by a scientist named Dr. Light with the help of his assistant, Dr. Wily. Eventually, Dr. Wily reprogrammed all of Dr Light’s robots, which become a violent threat. So Rock is then converted into a battle robot to defend the world from Wily’s violent robots, becoming Mega Man.
That premise doesn’t seem overly deserving of an R-rated adaptation, at least not in the way that things likeDeadpooldid. A cartoony looking blue android destroying robots with an arm cannon could easily be done as PG-13, or at least one would think. Maybe we’ll get to hear more about this in the future but for now, you’re able to look forward toAdi Shankar’sCastlevaniaseries, which is set to arrive on Netflix later this year.
