Live-Action Version Of One-Punch Man Is In The Works With Fast & Furious Director

Iconic anime show One-Punch Man is set to be adapted into a live-action movie and will be directed by Fast & Furious' Justin Lin.

One-Punch Man is the beloved webcomic turned anime that follows a superhero named Saitama who can defeat any opponent with a single punch and seeks out a worthy opponent just because he's bored.

Sony Pictures is looking to the action director to take the reins for the adaptation after they acquired the rights from Japanese publishing company Shueisha, according to Deadline. 

The news comes after Justin Lin stepped down as the director of Fast X just a few days into filming in April, citing 'creative differences'. 

Lin has been an integral part of the Fast & Furious film series, having been on board as director since the third edition of the series The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift.

The director took a break from the series for the seventh and eighth editions before rejoining for Fast 9, and originally being on board for Fast X. 

Lin will be joined by an all-star class of writers and producers as well for One-Punch Man, with Scott Rosenberg and Jeff Pinkner, who wrote Jumanji: The Next Level and Venom writing the live-action film.

Meanwhile, Avi Arad and Ari Arad from Arad productions, known for their work on the film series for Spider-Man, Iron Man, X-Men, and Venom will be joining Lin to produce the film. 

One-Punch Man was created by Japanese manga artist ONE, who wrote the original webcomic in 2009. 

A digital manga was published by Shueisha in 2012 on their Weekly Young Jump website, with the chapters compiled and released into volumes. 

Everett Collection Inc / Alamy

The manga was turned into an anime in 2015 by animation studio Madhouse, with a second season released in 2019.

With the action-packed nature of the Fast & Furious series, it’s no surprise why Sony has looked to Lin to head up the live-action adaptation.

Lin certainly has more free time now after stepping away from the series that he helped build over the past decade.

Lin released a statement on his decision to leave the iconic franchise, saying: “With the support of Universal, I have made the difficult decision to step back as director of FAST X, while remaining with the project as a producer. 

“Over 10 years and five films, we have been able to shoot the best actors, the best stunts, and the best damn car chases. 

“On a personal note, as the child of Asian immigrants, I am proud of helping to build the most diverse franchise in movie history. 

“I will forever be grateful to the amazing cast, crew and studio for their support, and for welcoming me into the FAST family.”

One-Man Punch is slated for release on 19 May 2023.

Topics: TV and Film, Fast and Furious

Jayden Collins

Jayden Collins is a Journalist at LADbible. He has worked across multiple media platforms in areas such as sport, music, pop culture, entertainment and politics. He is part of the editorial team for LADbible Australia.