Does a Robotech movie have some boxoffice potantial Global

[Art_of_Crime]

Before Pacific Rim opened a lot of people's eyes to Mech style combat no. Now, I think there is a good chance, but my fear is that some Michael Bay type would get a hold of it and turn it into an incoherent mess.
It is not a project for the faint hearted The fan base is just rabid and dedicated as comic fans, and there is so much material there I can't imagine a film that would satisfy the general population and the fans.

 

[Pink Ranger]

The difference between "Robocross" and Transformers is that Robocross begins and ends with the human characters and the human-level story, whereas in Transformers humans are definitely important, but have to be engineered into the story somehow. To me, Robocross is a no-brainer to adapt into a film; it may as well be a World War II epic romance, just with different weapons.

 

[Art_of_Crime]

It might just be me, but I find manga and Anime like this to be really intimidating. Between translation issues, stories that get re cut, re branded, fan dubs and a huge cannon to understand I often feel like I don't dare to start.
That might just be me, but i would think a film maker might "cut through the fluff" as it were to just feature lots of robots shooting at each other and throw in a few popular/generic channing tatum types to get public interest.

 

[Pink Ranger]

Some anime is just too far out there to be adapted into live action film: Akira, Guyver, etc., those are properties with just too many conceptual leaps for an audience to digest so they know what the heck is going on in a single film ("In the year 2034, many humans possess 'cyberghosts,' which are actually the spirits of the honored dead, who dwell in another dimension full of monsters, who are called 'chibiarokai,' who can be collected as pets or familiars, and a big sci-fi corporation called Tamozuki Energy is building up an army of them, etc."). It is for that reason I am somewhat less than optimistic about how Ghost In the Shell is going to work out.

Other anime properties, however, are more straightforward in terms of their storylines, and I think Robotech/Macross is one of them. I thought the live-action version of Yamato was pretty good, and that was done outside of Hollywood.

 

[Octoberist]

I think Warner Bros is just looking for their own Star Wars/Space Opera. Hell Disney has two with Guardians and Star Wars.

 

[PacificBoy]

The difference between "Robocross" and Transformers is that Robocross begins and ends with the human characters and the human-level story, whereas in Transformers humans are definitely important, but have to be engineered into the story somehow. To me, Robocross is a no-brainer to adapt into a film; it may as well be a World War II epic romance, just with different weapons.

And we have the perfect director for the job, someone who did a World War II epic romance and knows his way around giant robots...

 

[TheVileOne]

Looks like this article may have a clue to answering the thread's questions:
http://www.superherohype.com/news/329011-robotech-movie-plans-are-back-on-track

I really want this to happen. I have been a huge Robotech fan since I was a kid. My concern is that they have the GIJoe - The Rise of Cobra guy on this, which was a major dud. Here's hoping he doesn't f this up!!!

The film is hardly back on track. Warner Bros. hasn't given it a budget or a greenlit.

Can you honestly see WB giving $200 million to a director like Andy Muschietti after what is happening right now with Jupiter Ascending?

Also I like Robotech and all, but Robotech's heyday was in the 1980s. The fanbase is niche at best and very segmented these days. Transformers at least had numerous revivals and was still very popular ahead of the movies gettin gmade.

 

[TheVileOne]

And we have the perfect director for the job, someone who did a World War II epic romance and knows his way around giant robots...

Michael Bay?

He's not doing Robotech.

 

[PacificBoy]

Michael Bay?

He's not doing Robotech.

Yeah. (I don't mind him really for this gig. )

Is there a director already attached to Robotech?

 

[TheVileOne]

Yes. Andres Muschietti who did Mama. Keep dreaming because Bay isn't doing Robotech while he still has Transformers to keep on ruining.

It doesn't really matter. This thing has been kicked around since 2007. Until the heads of production give it a budget and say ok make it, it's not happening.

Nic Mathieu was attached before to direct. Didn't happen.

None of this really means anything until it gets a green light.

 

[PacificBoy]

Yeah, the money people are probably waiting for another big-budget Hollywood anime adaptation to take off first.

 

[TheVileOne]

The whole reason Robotech was probably getting attention at the time was because they just did a new animated movie and Transformers movie just came out and was huge. So suddenly, well let's get other movies made with big transforming robots.

Since that time, Transformers has started to lose its appeal with American audiences. Also cinematic attempts at making anime properties ended in failure. See Astro Boy. See Speed Racer. Etc.

Also this movie cannot be done cheap. Robotech would have to cost $200 million easy. You are investing hundreds of millions of dollars in a franchise like Robotech, franchise that hasn't been relevant in decades really.

 

[Lord]

Weren't Gundam and Evangelion more popular than Robotech? I barely see anyone still talking about Robotech compared to the other two.

 

[TheVileOne]

Pretty much. Evangelion movie never got off the ground either, and that's despite WETA being interested in it and making some fun fancy artwork.

It's easy to say scripts are being written, producers are developing it. But if the financing isn't there, then there is no movie.

A studio might be willing to invest six to low seven figures on writing a script for Robotech, but are they going to invest the hundreds of millions of dollars required to actually film it? It's a huge risk.

 

[Warhammer]

Yeah, I'd say it's too much of a gamble. The balls on the few who decide to finance the damn movie will be massive, especially after Pacific Rim from two years ago. Robotech just may be deemed too niche for the risk to be taken.

 

[TheVileOne]

When you look at Jupiter Ascending costing like $180 million. The only reason that happens is because of the Wachowskis and giving WB the Matrix Trilogy. Without that, Jupiter Ascending doesn't happen. Speed Racer doesn't happen.

Robotech has nothing like that going for it. Andy Muschietti doesn't have the clout to get that type of budget for like his second feature.

 

[Octoberist]

The question, and I'm trying to get into the mind of an exec: Why continue to waste money on developing this? Just to extend the rights (which I'm no lawyer, does that include just 'development hell' or does the project have to be green lit within a frame?)

 

[PacificBoy]

The question, and I'm trying to get into the mind of an exec: Why continue to waste money on developing this? Just to extend the rights (which I'm no lawyer, does that include just 'development hell' or does the project have to be green lit within a frame?)

I think it's kept alive for the potential that it can be a huge money maker, another franchise, and for the chance that a big name gets attached to it to get the financing going. Like Pink Ranger said, there are elements in Robotech which have been mined successfully in recent (and not-so recent) movies: Young adult-style love triangle, giant transforming robots, fighter jets and their hot-shot pilots, badass character's heroic sacrifice.

But as TheVileOne also said, the cost to making this movie is massive, prohibitively so.

 

[writer0327]

If they do the Macross Saga as a trilogy then I have hope it will turn out right. If they try and squeeze all of that information into one film they will screw it up. Too much material, too many characters to develop for a three hour film.

 

[TheVileOne]

The question, and I'm trying to get into the mind of an exec: Why continue to waste money on developing this? Just to extend the rights (which I'm no lawyer, does that include just 'development hell' or does the project have to be green lit within a frame?)

It probably only costs in the low seven figures to develop something like this. Then again we do not even know the finances of a deal like this.

No surprise WB isn't willing to bite the bullet yet.

But I mean same thing with Akira. Don't forget that movie got even further along than this film at WB before it got shelved. And in the end WB wasn't even willing to commit the say $90-100 million the film would've cost.

 

[Pink Ranger]

If they do the Macross Saga as a trilogy then I have hope it will turn out right. If they try and squeeze all of that information into one film they will screw it up. Too much material, too many characters to develop for a three hour film.

Movie 1: The SDF crashlands on warring Earth; Earth unites and develops mech technology; the Zentraedi invade Earth on the launch of SDF-1; battles take place on Earth; climactic resolution to send SDF into space, taking a chunk of Macross Island with it.

Movie 2: SDF battle Zentraedi in deep space; Khyron, Azonia and Myria introduced as villains to up the stakes. Introduction of protoculture as a plot point. SDF battles its way back to Earth; movie ends with death of Roy Fokker, and revelation that Myria and other Zentraedi are among the human population of the SDF.

Movie 3: Battle reaches Earth. Divisions among the Zentraedi emerge, Breetai, Exedore and Myria defect; both sides prepare for total war; Myria and Max are married; final battle devastates the Earth but humanity is victorious.

 

[PacificBoy]

Movie 1: The SDF crashlands on warring Earth; Earth unites and develops mech technology; the Zentraedi invade Earth on the launch of SDF-1; battles take place on Earth; climactic resolution to send SDF into space, taking a chunk of Macross Island with it.

Movie 2: SDF battle Zentraedi in deep space; Khyron, Azonia and Myria introduced as villains to up the stakes. Introduction of protoculture as a plot point. SDF battles its way back to Earth; movie ends with death of Roy Fokker, and revelation that Myria and other Zentraedi are among the human population of the SDF.

Movie 3: Battle reaches Earth. Divisions among the Zentraedi emerge, Breetai, Exedore and Myria defect; both sides prepare for total war; Myria and Max are married; final battle devastates the Earth but humanity is victorious.

Nice outline . Man, you know your Robotech. I had to google Breetai and Exedore.

 

[Saitou Hajime]

Robotech/Macross could be the next monster blockbuster franchise if done correctly. It pretty much has all the elements that international audiences gravitate to nowadays: epic story, captivating romance, kinetic action, and the MUSIC. That last part is the crucial one IMO.

 

[PacificBoy]

Robotech/Macross could be the next monster blockbuster franchise if done correctly. It pretty much has all the elements that international audiences gravitate to nowadays: epic story, captivating romance, kinetic action, and the MUSIC. That last part is the crucial one IMO.

Definitely. Something in the vein of M83's Oblivion perhaps.

 

[writer0327]

Movie 1: The SDF crashlands on warring Earth; Earth unites and develops mech technology; the Zentraedi invade Earth on the launch of SDF-1; battles take place on Earth; climactic resolution to send SDF into space, taking a chunk of Macross Island with it.

Movie 2: SDF battle Zentraedi in deep space; Khyron, Azonia and Myria introduced as villains to up the stakes. Introduction of protoculture as a plot point. SDF battles its way back to Earth; movie ends with death of Roy Fokker, and revelation that Myria and other Zentraedi are among the human population of the SDF.

Movie 3: Battle reaches Earth. Divisions among the Zentraedi emerge, Breetai, Exedore and Myria defect; both sides prepare for total war; Myria and Max are married; final battle devastates the Earth but humanity is victorious.

I love this, but if you end with Roy Fokker's death in the second film you have a lot of territory to cover in the last movie. Roy's death was at the mid point of the Macross saga. But I do love the rest.