Merrick here...
THIS piece over at Deadline reveals the "short list" of actors to whom Steve Kloves' script for a live-action AKIRA adaptation has been sent.
The story takes place in the rebuilt New Manhattan where a leader of a biker gang saves his friend from a medical experiment. There are two major roles, and I'm told that for Tetsuo, Robert Pattinson, Andrew Garfield and James McAvoy have been given the new script. For the role of Kaneda, the script has been given to Garrett Hedlund, Michael Fassbender, Chris Pine, Justin Timberlake and Joaquin Phoenix. The two leads are expected to come from that group of actors.
...says the article, which goes on to indicate the picture could well be headed for an August start under director Albert Hughes (co-director of DEAD PRESIDENTS, THE BOOK OF ELI, and MENACE II SOCIETY). At this point, it's still sounding like the saga will be spread over two movies.
— follow Merrick on Twitter ! ---
