"Pokémon" has become increasingly popular -- from video games, trading cards, animated TV series and more. Recently, there has been talk of making "Pokémon" into a live action film.
However, it seems that well-known companies such as Warner Bros. and Sony are competing for its movie rights. According to The Hollywood Reporter, there is a promising company that is emerging called Legendary Entertainment that might be able to acquire the movie rights to "Pokémon." This started when a secretive auction was made for franchising the "Pokémon" live action film.
It was noted that The Pokémon Company, a Japanese business that has the right to franchise "Pokémon," was hoping that Hollywood would be the one to launch the live-action film into theaters. They also considered the Warner Bros. studio since it was the one that showed the first "Pokémon" movie in 1999.
On the other hand, Legendary Entertainment was said to have the potential to bring the "Pokémon" into a live action film. However, Collider reported that it is owned by China's Dalian Wanda Group.
This might cause a problem since there is political tension between the Japan and China. This political tension was the result of how Japan criticized China on its territorial goals.
Apart from this, Legendary Entertainment has made its way in Japan's film industry and is known for partnering with Warner Bros. "Godzilla," which was released in 2014, was also made by them together with Japan's Toho Company, which has authority over the iconic monster. Toho also made the animated "Pokémon" film.
According to the source, Legendary and Warner Bros. are also planning to broadcast other movies such as "Kong: Skull Island" in 2017, "Godzilla" in 2018 and "Godzilla vs. Kong."
In the end, whoever will be able to claim the movie rights to "Pokémon" live action will surely receive huge box office sales. Hopefully, they will be able to satisfy the series' hardcore fans.
