Dragonball Z "Live Action"

Twentieth Century Fox is finally moving forward with a live-action adaptation of the hugely popular manga "Dragonball," casting the stars of the movie and setting a release date of next summer. Justin Chatwin is starring as the hero while James Marsters will play the villain in the sci-fi adventure, which will be directed by James Wong. The movie has been penciled in for a worldwide release date of Aug. 15, 2008. Stephen Chow, the filmmaker behind "Kung Fu Hustle" and "Shaolin Soccer," is producing. "Dragonball" is one of the most successful Japanese cultural exports of all time. The manga, created by Akira Toriyama and published by Tokyo's Jump Comics, was adapted into graphic novels, video games and a phenomenally successful television series that ran in Europe, Asia, Latin America and North America. "Dragonball's" popularity also generated more than $4 billion in merchandising sales. In North America, the property achieved the zenith of its popularity under the name "Dragonball Z." The story follows an adult humanoid alien named Goku, who discovers that he was sent to Earth to blend in and destroy our population but instead elects to protect it from an oncoming alien onslaught bent on dominating the universe and controlling the mystical objects from which the film takes its name. Chatwin, who will play Goku, has already begun training under the auspices of stunt performance company 87Eleven, which has executed and designed action pieces in pictures such as "The Matrix," "The Bourne Supremacy," "Mr. & Mrs. Smith" and "300." Marsters is playing the villainous Piccolo.

Cast

• Justin Chatwin as Goku: The hero of the film.
  
• James Marsters as Piccolo: The antagonist of the film. He was a fan of the television series, which he described as being "the coolest television cartoon in the last fifty thousand years [because] it’s got a Shakespearean sense of good and evil." He admitted, "When I got the role I had doubts. The more I live with it I realize that I am going to rock this harder than I have anything in my life."
• Jamie Chung as Chi-Chi: Goku's love interest. Stephen Chow had been interested in casting Zhang Yuqi, whom he worked with on CJ7, in the part.
• Emmy Rossum as Bulma: She aids Goku after her father's Dragonball is stolen by Piccolo.
• Chow Yun-Fat as Master Roshi: Goku's mentor.
• Joon Park as Yamcha. James Kyson Lee auditioned for the role.
• Eriko Tamura as Mai.
• Texas Battle has an unrevealed role.
• Luis Arrieta as Teto: A classmate and friend of Goku. He is an original character created for the film.