Hollywood adores a resurrection arc. Franchises once shelved like dusty VHS tapes suddenly return wearing prestige jackets and legacy glow. Ghostbusters: Afterlife proved nostalgia can be monetized with surgical precision. Now, as studios scan the horizon for the next intellectual property phoenix, a certain rocket-powered android hovers in development orbit, waiting for gravity, ambition, and corporate timing to align.

While proton packs cooled after their revival, another childhood relic flickered awake in studio corridors, and this time the energy source runs on rocket fuel.

According to The InSneider, Jason Reitman and Gil Kenan are developing a live-action adaptation of Astro Boy at Sony Pictures. The pair, who revived spectral nostalgia through Ghostbusters: Afterlife and Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire, are attached as producers while development remains early.

Reitman is not currently set to direct, though that could evolve with the screenplay. If realized, Astro Boy becomes the latest legacy property placed under their carefully calibrated creative stewardship.

Created in 1952 by Osamu Tezuka, Astro Boy remains a foundational pillar of modern Japanese pop culture. The story of a robot boy engineered by grief, then rejected by the scientist who built him to replace loss, reads like philosophy wrapped in circuitry. Multiple animated series and a 2009 feature film followed, yet live-action stalled for years. Sony’s renewed push signals confidence in the global appetite for prestige manga adaptations.

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As one studio engineers a robot boy for modern multiplexes, another platform quietly builds an empire where manga heroes already dominate global watchlists.

That appetite is visible within Netflix, which has positioned itself as a dominant hub for manga-based storytelling. Expansive arcs of JoJo's Bizarre Adventure, including the anticipated Steel Ball Run adaptation, sit alongside major portions of One Piece and its live-action counterpart. The platform also carries Baki Hanma, extending a physically punishing saga. Serialized anime has become central to its global acquisition strategy.

Equally significant is Netflix’s backing of Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba, whose faithful adaptation reshaped global box office expectations. By investing in high-profile adaptations and exclusive distribution deals, the platform built an ecosystem where legacy manga thrives alongside new originals. In that environment, a live-action Astro Boy from Sony would enter a market conditioned for authenticity and spectacle that earns its scale.

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What are your thoughts on Sony placing Astro Boy in the hands of modern franchise revivalists, and can this android compete in today’s manga-powered landscape? Let us know in the comments.