Actor and now director Michael B. Jordan is open to the idea of helming a Dragon Ball Z movie. Speaking with Nerdist, Jordan, who makes his directorial debut with the critically acclaimed Creed III, discussed the idea of bringing the world of Dragon Ball to live action, calling it the "ultimate challenge.”
While clearly excited about the prospect, Jordan, who is well-known for being a big fan of anime, is not entirely sure that a Dragon Ball Z live action movie is entirely possible. No doubt the actor still has the memories of the previous attempt at bringing the anime to the big screen, 2009’s Dragonball Evolution, keeping him up at night. As it does to us all.
Directed by James Wong and starring Justin Chatwin, Emmy Rossum, James Marsters, Jamie Chung, Chow Yun-fat, Joon Park, and Eriko Tamura, Dragonball Evolution failed to bring the beloved saga to screens in every conceivable way, receiving scathing reviews from critics, performing poorly at the box office, and going down in cinematic history as how not to make an adaptation.
Creed III Takes Some Major Inspiration from Dragon Ball & Other Anime
The reason why Jordan is now being asked about possibly helming a Dragon Ball Z movie is thanks to the actor’s love for all things anime, with the first time director revealing that Creed III takes major inspiration from the genre. "Without nerding out too much... You've seen so many fights throughout the Rocky and Creed franchise, and I really wanted to put my spin on it, you know? How to make these fights different, and you know, from Hajime no Ippo, to Megalo Box, to Naruto, to My Hero Academia, all of those different anime that I watched growing up, there's an inherent spirit to them in how they fight," Jordan explained.
If that were not already enough to convince you of Jordan’s suitability for a Dragon Ball movie, Creed III even includes what the star and director calls a “Dragon Ball Z punch.”
For now, audiences can first watch Jordan return to the ring for Creed III, which picks up five years after the events of 2018’s Creed II. After dominating the boxing world, Adonis "Donnie" Creed has since been thriving in both his career and family life. But when a childhood friend and former boxing prodigy, Damian "Dame" Anderson, resurfaces after serving a long sentence in prison, he is eager to prove that he deserves his shot in the ring. The face-off between former friends is more than just a fight. To settle the score, Donnie must put his future on the line to battle Dame – a fighter with nothing to lose.
Directed by Michael B. Jordan from a screenplay by Keenan Coogler and Zach Baylin, and from a story they co-wrote with Ryan Coogler, Creed III stars Michael B. Jordan, Jonathan Majors, Tessa Thompson, Phylicia Rashad, Wood Harris, Florian Munteanu, Selenis Leyva, Thaddeus J. Mixson, Spence Moore II, Mila Davis-Kent, and Canelo Álvarez.
Creed III is out now in theaters.