News

Funimation Offers HDR Disc Replacement for Akira Film's 4K Remaster

Funimation announced on Tuesday it is offering disc replacements for its release of the 4K remaster of the Akira anime film. Owners of the December 22 release of the Blu-ray Disc will receive the HDR (High Dynamic Range) Limited Edition version of the disc releasing in February 2021 free of charge. The December 22 release featured SDR (Standard Dynamic Range).

Owners of the older release can email Funimation for a replacement at akira4kreplacement@funimation.com for the United States and Canada and akira4kreplacementUK@funimation.com for the United Kingdom and Ireland with their details and a receipt of their purchase. The company details the method to request a replacement on its website.

The 4K remaster opened in Japanese theaters on April 3 on 36 IMAX theaters. The film ranked at #9 when it opened. The anime was originally scheduled to debut at Tokyo Anime Award Festival (TAAF) 2020 event on March 14, but organizers canceled the event due to the new coronavirus disease (COVID-19).

The remaster shipped on 4K Blu-ray Disc in Japan on April 24.

Katsuhiro Ōtomo's original science-fiction action manga is set in Neo-Tokyo, a city rebuilt after being destroyed in a mysterious explosion. The manga ran in Kodansha's Weekly Young Magazine from 1982 to 1990. Otomo directed his own animated film adaptation that premiered on July 16, 1988 — the same day that the story has the fictional Tokyo being destroyed.

Manga creator and anime director Otomo announced at Anime Expo panel in July 2019 that a new anime project of his Akira manga is in the works. Sunrise president and CEO Makoto Asanuma said at the same panel that the staff wants to incorporate the entirety of the manga's story.

Warner Bros. announced a live-action film adaptation of the manga in 2008, with Taika Waititi (Thor: Ragnarok, Boy, Hunt for the Wilderpeople) directing the film. Entertainment news website Deadline reported last December that Warner Bros. moved its planned film off its release schedule. Entertainment news website Variety reported in July 2019 that Warner Bros. has delayed the film indefinitely. The film was previously slated to begin production in fall 2019, and its release was scheduled for May 21, 2021.

Source: Funimation