After the cinema flop of 2008: Apple dares to create a real version of the cult anime “Speed Racer”.
“Lost” creator J.J. Abrams (55) is shooting a series version of the anime “Speed Racer” for Apple. As “Variety” reports, it should be a real version of the animated cult series. Abrams, who has worked as a director in both the Star Trek and Star Wars universes, will serve as executive producer on the project.
“Speed Racer” is about the adventures of the young racing driver Gō Mifune in his racing car Mach 5. He is supported by his family, the mechanic Sabu and the tame chimpanzee Senpei. The anime series first aired on Japanese television in 1967. It is based on a manga that appeared a year earlier.
“Speed Racer”: Controversial cult series in Germany
As early as 1967, “Speed Racer” was shown on American television in a revised version. In the form of the US version, “Speed Racer” became an international cult hit. The show first aired in Germany in 1971, as the first anime series ever to be broadcast on German television. In this country, “Speed Racer” was always controversial because of its brutality. “Der Spiegel” described them as “horror comics” and “blood and carom spectacles”. After three episodes and protests from parents, ARD canceled the series. After another attempt in 1973 it was finally over.
A live-action adaptation of “Speed Racer”, wasn’t there something? In 2008, the Wachowski siblings (“Matrix”) tried a cinema adaptation, with Emile Hirsch (37) and Christina Ricci (42), among others. The brightly colored, experimental spectacle flopped at the box office and is therefore considered a failure.
