ONE PIECE to Be Adapted Into Live-Action Film

Shanghai Minghuan Investment Co., Ltd., a Chinese company based in Shanghai, recently announced that the company has bought the copyright of the popular Japanese manga and TV anime ONE PIECE from the manga artist and owner of One Piece Eiichiro Oda for 1.6 billion Yen (US$ 15.1 million) and plans to adapt it into a live-action film.

One Piece has enjoyed widespread popularity across the globe ever since it started serializing in 1997. Although anticipations have been high from its fans, the adaptation of One Piece into a live-action film was regarded as a mission impossible due to its copyright issues. The copyright deal sealed by the Chinese company can really be an excitement to One Piece fans all over the world, as the deal will grant the company the right to develop related live-action film, TV series and other derivatives.

The company revealed that the Japanese actor Masataka Kubota will star as Monkey D. Luffy in the film, who ranked top 1 in Who They'd Like To See Play Luffy from One Piece of the poll conducted recently by Goo Ranking. Meanwhile, it would be a surprise for the fans that the heroine Charlotte Purin will not be played by a Japanese nationality, but a Chinese girl named Xie Leilei, a member of the Chinese Idol Girl Group GNZ48. She is called as The Girl from One Piece by her fans due to her resemblance to Charlotte Purin in the manga.