DragonBall: Evolution Released Today
April 10, 2009In case you didn't realize, DragonBall: Evolution was released today, Friday, April 10, 2009 in the United States.
Although I have not seen many commercials or advertisements for the film, it was released alongside Hannah Montana the Movie and Observe and Report during the Easter weekend.
Written and directed by James Wong, the big screen adaptation stars Justin Chatwin, James Marsters, Jamie Chung, Emmy Rossum, Eriko Tamura, Joon Park, Chow Yun-Fat, Texas Battle, Randall Duk Kim and Ernie Hudson.
Update: Box Office Mojo is reporting that DragonBall: Evolution made less than $5 million in the domestic market with $4,756,488. International markets provided 85% of the total gross so far with $25,315,346.
According to the weekend chart, Hannah Montana made over $32 million for first place this weekend as Fast and Furious and Monsters Vs. Aliens took in over $20 million each. DragonBall was released in only 2,181 theaters while Monsters Vs. Aliens is in an impressive 4,136 theaters.
DragonBall Cast Talks Adaption
April 6, 2009 MTV and Superhero Hype talked to the cast about starring in DragonBall: Evolution, opening in theaters on Friday, April 10.
MTV News spoke with the the people behind the film and in front of the camera to get a roundup of the differences fans can expect to see between the live-action film, the various DragonBall anime series and the original manga that started it all.
As a huge fan of the DragonBall series, Buffy the Vampire Slayer alum James Marsters (Lord Piccolo) was quick to remind audiences that, though DragonBall Z may be the more popular iteration of the anime in the United States, the first anime series ran for over 150 episodes before Z ever came along. He explained that while his version of Piccolo may not be the version we’re used to, it doesn’t mean that, sequels permitting, we won’t eventually see him in the more traditional, greener-skinned makeup.
Director James Wong attributes many of the changes to superficial necessities in pulling characters and costumes into the real world. Like the experience 20th Century Fox had with the X-Men films, Wong believes that just because Goku wears bright orange in the anime, that doesn’t mean it’s going to look right on-screen.
“We shot so many test with so many different versions,” said Wong, pointing out that fans should still get a kick out of the regular costume’s brief appearance.
For Justin Chatwin (Goku), the biggest issue was in making sure that the film captured the hero’s uniquely spikey hairstyle, going through 40 cans of hairspray to get down the right blend of real-world and cartoon. Likewise, Emmy Rossum’s Bulma went through quite a few iterations of all-blue wigs before the end-result of a partially-blue dye.
The other major change comes in capturing the tone of DragonBall — one that Wong explained was shifted early on for a family-friendly focus, a move that involved dropping some of the more risqué elements of the original manga. While Chow Yun Fat’s Master Roshi may look totally different than his animated counterpart, the cast insists that the important elements are still there.
"He kind of embodies the essence of Master Roshi," explained Jaime Chung (Chi Chi), "Minus being perverted."
In the big screen adaptation of the popular Japanese manga created by Akira Toriyama, Chatwin plays the heroic Goku, a powerful warrior who protects the Earth from an endless stream of rogues bent on dominating the Universe and controlling the mystical objects from which the film takes its name. Rossum is Bulma, a beautiful woman intent on retrieving the mystical Dragonballs for her own reasons; Chung is Chi Chi, a young martial artist who captures Goku's eye; and Marsters plays the villain, Lord Piccolo.
DragonBall 2 Script Complete
April 3, 2009 MTV received word that the script for a DragonBall sequel has already been completed.
"I know they’ve written a second one and it’s pretty far out there," actor Justin Chatwin told MTV News. Chatwin plays Goku, the hero of the tale, who seeks to recover the powerful Dragonballs and protect the world from the evil Lord Piccolo, played by Buffy the Vampire Slayer alum James Marsters.
“The second one really goes to some different places that I’ve never seen in any comic book adaptation,” said Chatwin. Chatwin admits that he hasn’t read the sequel script firsthand, but that he’s been told a lot about it and that he and co-star Emmy Rossum (Bulma) would jump at the chance to return for more.
Likewise, Marsters is not only ready for a second chapter, but would like to see the franchise continue indefinitely. A die-hard fan of the anime, Marsters has every intention of fulfilling the arch of Piccolo in live-action. "We’re going to get to DragonBall Z later. where Piccolo becomes youthful and he’s going to become the Piccolo that most people recognize."
Director James Wong was a tad more cautious and wants to reminds fans that, even though a sequel may have already been written (he would neither confirm nor deny the script’s existence), the litmus test is really going to come down to next weekend’s box office.
Emmy Rossum Discusses DragonBall Criticism
March 31, 2009 MTV talked to Emmy Rossum who hopes that DragonBall fans will give the film a shot before writing it off unseen.
“It is called DragonBall: Evolution because it is an evolution of the series, and I think that when you’re going from a comic to live-action things are going to change. When you take it into 3D that way, it’s just going to be a little different. but I think the core of what it it and the core of the story and the core of the characters is the same.”
And while Rossum admits that she’s tried her best not to pay attention to the detractors out in message board land in terms of the overall look and feel of the adaptation, she feels that what changes have been made will be for the better, and are a natural progression when a comic makes the jump to the screen.
"When you’re talking about translating a comic into real life, a lot of things change. My hair isn’t all blue in the film and Justin Chatwin’s hair isn’t 10-feet high, so I think everything changes a bit or gets lost in translation, so I hope that [the fans are] pleased."
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DragonBall: Evolution Moves Back Two Days
March 27, 2009 Superhero Hype received word from 20th Century Fox that DragonBall: Evolution will open on Friday, April 10th instead of the previously scheduled Wednesday opening.
It will debut the same day that Hannah Montana the Movie and Observe and Report are released in theaters.
Written and directed by James Wong, the big screen adaptation stars Justin Chatwin, James Marsters, Jamie Chung, Emmy Rossum, Eriko Tamura, Joon Park, Chow Yun-Fat, Texas Battle, Randall Duk Kim and Ernie Hudson.
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