Interest
Purported Photos from Live-Action Detective Pikachu Film Circulated
posted on by Lynzee Loveridge
Photos are circulating online that appear to be shots from the set of Rob Letterman's Detective Pikachu live-action film starring Ryan Reynolds, Justice Smith , Ken Watanabe, and Kathryn Newton. The photos show extras dressed in Pikachu and Snorlax outfits as well as green-screen suits.
The pictures are allegedly from the film shoot held in London. During the shoot, large balloons were released into the sky while actors Watanabe, who plays the original character Detective Yoshida, and Bill Nighy look on.
Actress Kathryn Newton is shown in a red blazer with the pin "CNM" under her lapel. Newton is starring as the "sassy journalist" Lucy. Another shot shows her standing among extras laying on the ground. Another image shows an actress in character and seemingly handcuffed next to actors dressed as police officers.
One more image shows a group of cast members dressed in similar silver outfits with matching purple baseball caps. Newton is running through the crowd.
The original Detective Pikachu Nintendo 3DS game follows protagonist Tim Goodman who comes to Ryme City to locate his missing father, who is a detective. There he discovers he can communicate with his father's Pokémon partner, a Pikachu who survived the accident. While attempting to uncover his father's whereabouts, he becomes embroiled in a mystery that involves Pokémon around the city going berserk.
Players familiar with the game's story will recognize some the elements in the photos, like the balloons. However, the live-action film is already taking some liberties with the film's characters, so other things could change. For instance, Newton's character Lucy was named Emilia Christie in the English version of the game and while she had a confident, assured personality, she wasn't sassy. Watanabe's character Detective Yoshida could also be a reworked version of Detective Holliday from the game.
Chris Geere (You're the Worst), Suki Waterhouse (Assassination Nation), and Rita Ora (Fifty Shades Freed) are also signed on to appear in the film.
Legendary Entertainment acquired the live-action film rights for the Pokémon franchise in July 2016. The Hollywood Reporter reported in April 2016 that Legendary Entertainment, Warner Bros., and Sony were engaged in an auction for the rights. Warner already released several of the animated Pokémon films, starting with Pokémon: The First Movie in North American theaters in 1999. Warner then released Pokémon 2000 - The Movie and 2001's Pokémon 3 - The Movie.
