Why the One Punch Man Live Action film is key for the series' future, explained

With The Hollywood Reporter's news of the One Punch Man Live Action film having Rick and Morty writers Anne Campbell and Dan Harmon onboard from Monday, April 15, 2024, fans have become increasingly intrigued by Sony's previously announced project. Much of the intrigue comes from fans considering the film in development hell, considering how little information has come out since its initial announcement in 2020.

However, with this latest news, the One Punch Man Live Action project seems alive and well despite moving through production processes at a snail's pace. Fans are likewise excited for the most part. While some share their negative preconceptions, many are optimistic that the series will translate well into a live-action medium.

However, one hot topic of debate amongst fans is what benefits, if any, the One Punch Man Live Action series brings to the table for the overall anime and manga franchise. While it's an understandable point of contention, the series could stand to benefit tremendously from a live-action adaptation, especially if done properly as other recent adaptations have been.

One Punch Man Live Action film could reinvigorate the series’ fanbase with an influx of new readers and viewers

Expand Tweet

One of the biggest reasons now is the perfect time for a One Punch Man Live Action series stems from the recent success of other original manga series live-action adaptations. Specifically, Netflix's One Piece Live Action and Yu Yu Hakusho Live Action series have earned specific and plentiful praise from fans for "breaking the curse" of live-action adaptations.

As a result of the prior successes of these series, fans are inherently more open to the idea of a live-action adaptation production, especially a film with a matching budget and big names attached. The project also serves to reinvigorate the series' fanbase, as seen with the Yu Yu Hakusho adaptation and, to a lesser extent, One Piece Live Action.

While the latter series wasn't necessarily "reinvigorated," it did result in many people whose first exposure to both franchises was the live-action adaptations switching to the anime and manga. Likewise, if done properly, it's expected that the One Punch Man Live Action film could elicit similar responses from fans whose first exposure to the franchise will be the live-action movie.

Expand Tweet

This would, in turn, help solve a few key problems the franchise is currently experiencing, such as underwhelming manga sales that are being "band-aided" with a redraw run on various Shueisha platforms. If the live-action adaptation is executed well enough, it could very easily convince many of its viewers to begin either watching the anime or reading the manga.

The anime, in particular, is one area of the franchise in which the One Punch Man Live Action film could be a major game-changer. While fans have waited long for season 3, some coincidental release timing between the film and the third season could lead to the anime's international audience surging. In turn, this could inspire animation studio J.C. Staff to both give the anime a higher budget and work with quicker turnaround times for the fourth season.

There's also the fact that a high-quality One Punch Man live-action film could legitimize the series as being "more" than an anime or manga in the eyes of Western fans. Likewise, to grow the franchise's fanbase, the film's target audience will likely be Westerners who aren't already fans of the anime or manga. While this is all speculative as of this article's writing, fans should have a better idea of the film's goals as it begins releasing promotional material.