#f: jojo rabbit

[rhysdarbinizedarby]

Couch surfer in his 30s. Oscar winner in his 40s. Why the whole world wants Taika

**Notes: This is very long post!**

Good Weekend

In his 30s, he was sleeping on couches. By his 40s, he’d directed a Kiwi classic, taken a Marvel movie to billion-dollar success, and won an Oscar. Meet Taika Waititi, king of the oddball – and one of New Zealand’s most original creative exports.

Taika Waititi: “Be a nice person and live a good life. And just don’t be an arsehole.”

The good news? Taika Waititi is still alive. I wasn’t sure. The screen we were speaking through jolted savagely a few minutes ago, with a cacophonous bang and a confused yelp, then radio silence. Now the Kiwi ­ filmmaker is back, grinning like a loon: “I just broke the f---ing table, bro!”

Come again? “I just smashed this f---ing table and glass flew everywhere. It’s one of those old annoying colonial tables. It goes like this – see that?” Waititi says, holding up a folding furniture leg. “I hit the mechanism and it wasn’t locked. Anyway …”

I’m glad he’s fine. The stuff he’s been saying from his London hotel room could incur biblical wrath. We’re talking about his latest project, Next Goal Wins, a movie about the American Samoa soccer team’s quest to score a solitary goal, 10 years after suffering the worst loss in the game’s international history – a 31-0 ­ignominy to Australia – but our chat strays into ­spirituality, then faith, then religion.

“I don’t personally believe in a big guy sitting on a cloud judging everyone, but that’s just me,” Waititi says, deadpan. “Because I’m a grown-up.”

This is the way his interview answers often unfold. Waititi addresses your topic – dogma turns good people bad, he says, yet belief itself is worth lauding – but bookends every response with a conspiratorial nudge, wink, joke or poke. “Regardless of whether it’s some guy living on a cloud, or some other deity that you’ve made up – and they’re all made up – the message across the board is the same, and it’s important: Be a nice person, and live a good life. And just don’t be an arsehole!”

Not being an arsehole seems to have served Waititi, 48, well. Once a national treasure and indie darling (through the quirky tenderness of his breakout New Zealand films Boy in 2010 and Hunt for the Wilderpeople in 2016), Waititi then became a star of both the global box office (through his 2017 entry into the Marvel Universe, Thor: Ragnarok, which grossed more than $1.3 billion worldwide) and then the Academy Awards (winning the 2020 best adapted screenplay Oscar for his subversive Holocaust dramedy JoJo Rabbit, in which he played an imaginary Hitler).

Waititi playing Adolf Hitler in the 2019 movie JoJo Rabbit. (Alamy)

A handsome devil with undeniable roguish charm, Waititi also slid seamlessly into style-icon status (attending this year’s Met Gala shirtless, in a floor-length gunmetal-grey Atelier Prabal Gurung wrap coat, with pendulous pearl necklaces), as well as becoming his own brand (releasing an eponymous line of canned ­coffee drinks) and bona fide Hollywood A-lister (he was introduced to his second wife, British singer Rita Ora, by actor Robert Pattinson at a barbecue).

Putting that platform to use, Waititi is an Indigenous pioneer and mentor, too, co-creating the critically acclaimed TV series Reservation Dogs, while co-founding the Piki Films production company, committed to promoting the next generation of storytellers – a mission that might sound all weighty and worthy, yet Waititi’s new wave of First Nations work is never earnest, always mixing hurt with heart and howling humour.

Waititi with wife Rita Ora at the 2023 Met Gala in May. (Getty Images)

Makes sense. Waititi is a byproduct of “the weirdest coupling ever” – his late Maori father from the Te Whanau-a-Apanui tribe was an artist, farmer and “Satan’s Slaves” bikie gang founder, while his Wellington schoolteacher mum descended from Russian Jews, although he’s not devout about her faith. (“No, I don’t practise,” he confirms. “I’m just good at everything, straight away.”)

He’s remained loyally tethered to his ­origin story, too – and to a cadre of creative Kiwi mates, including actors Jemaine Clement and Rhys Darby – never forgetting that not long before the actor/writer/producer/director was an industry maven, he was a penniless painter/photographer/ musician/comedian.

With no set title and no fixed address, he’s seemingly happy to be everything, everywhere (to everyone) all at once. “‘The universe’ is bandied around a lot these days, but I do believe in the kind of connective tissue of the universe, and the energy that – scientifically – we are made up of a bunch of atoms that are bouncing around off each other, and some of the atoms are just squished together a bit tighter than others,” he says, smiling. “We’re all made of the same stardust, and that’s pretty special.”

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We’ve caught Waititi in a somewhat relaxed moment, right before the screen actors’ and media artists’ strike ends. He’s ­sensitive to the struggle but doesn’t deny enjoying the break. “I spent a lot of time thinking about writing, and not writing, and having a nice ­holiday,” he tells Good Weekend. “Honestly, it was a good chance just to recombobulate.”

Waititi, at right, with Hunt for the Wilderpeople actors, from left, Sam Neill, Rhys Darby and Julian Dennison. (Getty Images)

It’s mid-October, and he’s just headed to Paris to watch his beloved All Blacks in the Rugby World Cup. He’s deeply obsessed with the game, and sport in general. “Humans spend all of our time knowing what’s going to happen with our day. There’s no surprises ­any more. We’ve become quite stagnant. And I think that’s why people love sport, because of the air of unpredictability,” he says. “It’s the last great arena entertainment.”

The main filmic touchstone for Next Goal Wins (which premieres in Australian cinemas on New Year’s Day) would be Cool Runnings (1993), the unlikely true story of a Jamaican bobsled team, but Waititi also draws from genre classics such as Any Given Sunday and Rocky, sampling trusted tropes like the musical training montage. (His best one is set to Everybody Wants to Rule the World by Tears for Fears.)

Filming in Hawaii was an uplifting experience for the self-­described Polynesian Jew. “It wasn’t about death, or people being cruel to each other. Thematically, it was this simple idea, of getting a small win, and winning the game wasn’t even their goal – their goal was to get a goal,” he says. “It was a really sweet backbone.”

Waititi understands this because, growing up, he was as much an athlete as a nerd, fooling around with softball and soccer before discovering rugby league, then union. “There’s something about doing exercise when you don’t know you’re doing exercise,” he enthuses. “It’s all about the fun of throwing a ball around and trying to achieve something together.” (Whenever Waititi is in Auckland he joins his mates in a long-running weekend game of touch rugby. “And then throughout the week I work out every day. Obviously. I mean, look at me.”)

Auckland is where his kids live, too, so he spends as much time there as possible. Waititi met his first wife, producer Chelsea Winstanley, on the set of Boy in 2010, and they had two daughters, Matewa Kiritapu, 8, and his firstborn, Te Kainga O’Te Hinekahu, 11. (The latter is a derivative of his grandmother’s name, but he jokes with American friends that it means “Resurrection of Tupac” or “Mazda RX7″) Waititi and Winstanley split in about 2018, and he married the pop star Ora in 2022.

He offers a novel method for balancing work with parenthood … “Look, you just abandon them, and know that the experience will make them harder individuals later on in life. And it’s their problem,” he says. “I’m going to give them all of the things that they need, and I’m going to leave behind a decent bank ­account for their therapy, and they will be just like me, and the cycle will continue.”

Jokes aside – I think he’s joking – school holidays are always his, and he brings the girls onto the set of every movie he makes. “They know enough not to get in the way or touch anything that looks like it could kill you, and they know to be respectful and quiet when they need to. But they’re just very comfortable around filmmakers, which I’m really happy about, because eventually I hope they will get into the ­industry. One more year,” he laughs, “then they can leave school and come work for Dad.”

Theirs is certainly a different childhood than his. Growing up, he was a product of two worlds. His given names, for instance, were based on his appearance at birth: “Taika David” if he looked Maori (after his Maori grandfather) and “David Taika” if he looked Pakeha (after his white grandfather). His parents split when he was five, so he bounced between his dad’s place in Waihau Bay, where he went by the surname Waititi, and his mum, eight hours drive away in Wellington, where he went by Cohen (the last name on his birth ­certificate and passport).

Waititi was precocious, even charismatic. His mother Robin once told Radio New Zealand that people always wanted to know him, even as an infant: “I’d be on a bus with him, and he was that kind of baby who smiled at people, and next thing you know they’re saying, ‘Can I hold your baby?’ He’s always been a charmer to the public eye.”

He describes himself as a cool, sporty, good-looking nerd, raised on whatever pop culture screened on the two TV channels New Zealand offered in the early 1980s, from M*A*S*H and Taxi to Eddie Murphy and Michael Jackson. He was well-read, too. When punished by his mum, he would likely be forced to analyse a set of William Blake poems.

He puts on a whimpering voice to describe their finances – “We didn’t have much monneeey” – explaining how his mum spent her days in the classroom but also worked in pubs, where he would sit sipping a raspberry lemonade, doodling drawings and writing stories. She took in ­ironing and cleaned houses; he would help out, learning valuable lessons he imparts to his kids. “And to random people who come to my house,” he says. “I’ll say, ‘Here’s a novel idea, wash this dish,’ but people don’t know how to do anything these days.”

“Every single character I’ve ever written has been based on someone I’ve known or met or a story I’ve stolen from someone.” - Taika Waititi

He loved entertaining others, clearly, but also himself, recording little improvised radio plays on a tape deck – his own offbeat versions of ET and Indiana Jones and Star Wars. “Great free stuff where you don’t have any idea what the story is as you’re doing it,” he says. “You’re just sort of making it up and enjoying the ­freedom of playing god in this world where you can make people and characters do whatever you want.”

His other sphere of influence lay in Raukokore, the tiny town where his father lived. Although Boy is not autobiographical, it’s deeply personal insofar as it’s filmed in the house where he grew up, and where he lived a life similar to that portrayed in the story, surrounded by his recurring archetypes: warm grandmothers and worldly kids; staunch, stoic mums; and silly, stunted men. “Every single character I’ve ever written has been based on someone I’ve known or met,” he says, “or a story I’ve stolen from someone.”

He grew to love drawing and painting, obsessed early on with reproducing the Sistine Chapel. During a 2011 TED Talk on creativity, Waititi describes his odd subject matter, from swastikas and fawns to a picture of an old lady going for a walk … upon a sword … with Robocop. “My father was an outsider artist, even though he wouldn’t know what that meant,” Waititi told the audience in Doha. “I love the naive. I love people who can see things through an innocent viewpoint. It’s inspiring.”

After winning Best Adapted Screenplay Academy Award for JoJo Rabbit in 2020. (Getty Images)

It was an interesting time in New Zealand, too – a coming-of-age decade in which the Maori were rediscovering their culture. His area was poor, “but only ­financially,” he says. “It’s very rich in terms of the ­people and the culture.” He learned kapa haka – the songs, dances and chants performed by competing tribes at cultural events, or to honour people at funerals and graduations – weddings, parties, ­anything. “Man, any excuse,” he explains. “A big part of doing them is to uplift your spirits.”

Photography was a passion, so I ask what he shot. “Just my penis. I sent them to people, but we didn’t have phones, so I would print them out, post them. One of the first dick pics,” he says. Actually, his lens was trained on regular people. He watches us still – in airports, ­restaurants. “Other times late at night, from a tree. Whatever it takes to get the story. You know that.”

He went to the Wellington state school Onslow College and did plays like Androcles and the Lion, A Midsummer Night’s Dream and The Crucible. His crew of arty students eventually ended up on stage at Bats Theatre in the city, where they would perform haphazard comedy shows for years.

“Taika was always rebellious and wild in his comedy, which I loved,” says his high school mate Jackie van Beek, who became a longtime collaborator, including working with Waititi on a Tourism New Zealand campaign this year. “I remember he went through a phase of turning up in bars around town wearing wigs, and you’d try and sit down and have a drink with him but he’d be doing some weird character that would invariably turn up in some show down the track.”

He met more like-minded peers at Victoria University, including Jemaine Clement (who’d later become co-creator of Flight of the Conchords). During a 2019 chat with actor Elijah Wood, Waititi ­describes he and Clement clocking one another from opposite sides of the library one day: a pair of Maoris experiencing hate at first sight, based on a mutual suspicion of cultural appropriation. (Clement was wearing a traditional tapa cloth Samoan shirt, and Waititi was like: “This motherf---er’s not Samoan.” Meanwhile, Waititi was wearing a Rastafarian beanie, and Clement was like, “This ­motherf---er’s not Jamaican.”)

With Jemaine Clement in 2014. (Getty Images)

But they eventually bonded over Blackadder and Fawlty Towers, and especially Kenny Everett, and did comedy shows together everywhere from Edinburgh to Melbourne. Waititi was almost itinerant, spending months at a time busking, or living in a commune in Berlin. He acted in a few small films, and then – while playing a stripper on a bad TV show – realised he wanted to try life behind the camera. “I became tired of being told what to do and ordered around,” he told Wellington’s Dominion Post in 2004. “I remember sitting around in the green room in my G-string ­thinking, ‘Why am I doing this? Just helping someone else to realise their dream.’ ”

He did two strong short films, then directed his first feature – Eagle vs Shark (2007) – when he was 32. He brought his mates along (Clement, starring with Waititi’s then-girlfriend Loren Horsley), setting something of a pattern in his career: hiring friends instead of constantly navigating new working relationships. “If you look at things I’m doing,” he tells me, “there’s ­always a few common denominators.”

Sam Neill says Waititi is the exemplar of a new New Zealand humour. “The basis of it is this: we’re just a little bit crap at things.”

This gang of collaborators shares a common Kiwi vibe, too, which his longtime friend, actor Rhys Darby, once coined “the comedy of the mundane”. Their new TV show, Our Flag Means Death, for example, leans heavily into the mundanity of pirate life – what happens on those long days at sea when the crew aren’t unsheathing swords from scabbards or burying treasure.

Waititi plays pirate captain Blackbeard, centre, in Our Flag Means Death, with Rhys Darby, left, and Rory Kinnear. (Google Images)

Sam Neill, who first met Waititi when starring in Hunt for the Wilderpeople, says Waititi is the exemplar of a new New Zealand humour. “And I think the basis of it is this,” says Neill. “We’re just a little bit crap at things, and that in itself is funny.” After all, Neill asks, what is What We Do in The Shadows (2014) if not a film (then later a TV show) about a bunch of vampires who are pretty crap at being vampires, ­living in a pretty crappy house, not quite getting busted by crappy local cops? “New Zealand often gets named as the least corrupt country in the world, and I think it’s just that we would be pretty crap at being corrupt,” Neill says. “We don’t have the capacity for it.”

Waititi’s whimsy also spurns the dominant on-screen oeuvre of his homeland – the so-called “cinema of ­unease” exemplified by the brutality of Once Were Warriors (1994) and the emotional peril of The Piano (1993). Waititi still explores pathos and pain, but through laughter and weirdness. “Taika feels to me like an ­antidote to that dark aspect, and a gift somehow,” Neill says. “And I’m grateful for that.”

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Something happened to Taika Waititi when he was about 11 – something he doesn’t go into with Good Weekend, but which he considered a betrayal by the adults in his life. He ­mentioned it only recently – not the ­moment itself, but the lesson he learnt: “That you cannot and must not rely on grown-ups to help you – you’re basically in the world alone, and you’re gonna die alone, and you’ve just gotta make it all for yourself,” he told Irish podcast host James Brown. “I basically never forgave people in positions of responsibility.”

What does that mean in his work? First, his finest films tend to reflect the clarity of mind possessed by children, and the unseen worlds they create – fantasies conjured up as a way to understand or overcome. (His mum once summed up the main ­message of Boy: “The ­unconditional love you get from your children, and how many of us waste that, and don’t know what we’ve got.”)

Second, he’s suited to movie-making – “Russian roulette with art” – because he’s drawn to disruptive force and chaos. And that in turn produces creative defiance: allowing him to reinvigorate the Marvel Universe by making superheroes fallible, or tell a Holocaust story by making fun of Hitler. “Whenever I have to deal with someone who’s a boss, or in charge, I challenge them,” he told Brown, “and I really do take whatever they say with a pinch of salt.”

It’s no surprise then that Waititi was comfortable leaping from independent films to the vast complexity of Hollywood blockbusters. He loves the challenge of coordinating a thousand interlocking parts, requiring an army of experts in vocations as diverse as construction, sound, art, performance and logistics. “I delegate a lot,” he says, “and share the load with a lot of people.”

“This is a cool concept, being able to ­afford whatever I want, as opposed to sleeping on couches until I was 35.” - Taika Waititi

But the buck stops with him. Time magazine named Waititi one of its Most Influential 100 People of 2022. “You can tell that a film was made by Taika Waititi the same way you can tell a piece was painted by Picasso,” wrote Sacha Baron Cohen. Compassionate but comic. Satirical but watchable. Rockstar but auteur. “Actually, sorry, but this guy’s really starting to piss me off,” Cohen concluded. “Can someone else write this piece?”

Directing Chris Hemsworth in 2017 in Thor: Ragnarok, which grossed more than $1.3 billion at the box office. (Alamy)

I’m curious to know how he stays grounded amid such adulation. Coming into the game late, he says, helped immensely. After all, Waititi was 40 by the time he left New Zealand to do Thor: Ragnarok. “If you let things go to your head, then it means you’ve struggled to find out who you are,” he says. “But I’ve always felt very comfortable with who I am.” Hollywood access and acclaim – and the pay cheques – don’t erase memories of poverty, either. “It’s more like, ‘Oh, this is a cool concept, being able to ­afford whatever I want, as opposed to sleeping on couches until I was 35.’ ” Small towns and strong tribes keep him in check, too. “You know you can’t piss around and be a fool, because you’re going to embarrass your family,” he says. “Hasn’t stopped me, though.”

Sam Neill says there was never any doubt Waititi would be able to steer a major movie with energy and imagination. “It’s no accident that the whole world wants Taika,” he says. “But his seductiveness comes with its own dangers. You can spread yourself a bit thin. The temptation will be to do more, more, more. That’ll be interesting to watch.”

Indeed, I find myself vicariously stressed out over the list of potential projects in Waititi’s future. A Roald Dahl animated series for Netflix. An Apple TV show based on the 1981 film Time Bandits. A sequel to What We Do In The Shadows. A reboot of Flash Gordon. A gonzo horror comedy, The Auteur, starring Jude Law. Adapting a cult graphic novel, The Incal, as a feature. A streaming series based on the novel Interior Chinatown. A film based on a Kazuo Ishiguro bestseller. Plus bringing to life the wildly popular Akira comic books. Oh, and for good measure, a new instalment of Star Wars, which he’s already warned the world will be … different.

“It’s going to change things,” he told Good Morning America. “It’s going to change what you guys know and expect.”

Did I say I was stressed for Waititi? I meant physically sick.

“Well…” he qualifies, “some of those things I’m just producing, so I come up with an idea or someone comes to me with an idea, and I shape how ‘it’s this kind of show’ and ‘here’s how we can get it made.’ It’s easier for me to have a part in those things and feel like I’ve had a meaningful role in the creative process, but also not having to do what I’ve always done, which is trying to control everything.”

In the 2014 mockumentary horror film What We Do in the Shadows, which he co-directed with Jemaine Clement. (Alamy)

What about moving away from the niche New Zealand settings he represented so well in his early work? How does he stay connected to his roots? “I think you just need to know where you’re from,” he says, “and just don’t forget that.”

They certainly haven’t forgotten him.

Jasmin McSweeney sits in her office at the New Zealand Film Commission in Wellington, surrounded by promotional posters Waititi signed for her two decades ago, when she was tasked with promoting his nascent talent. Now the organisation’s marketing chief, she talks to me after visiting the heart of thriving “Wellywood”, overseeing the traditional karakia prayer on the set of a new movie starring Geoffrey Rush.

Waititi isn’t the first great Kiwi filmmaker – dual Oscar-winner Jane Campion and blockbuster king Peter Jackson come to mind – yet his particular ascendance, she says, has spurred unparalleled enthusiasm. “Taika gave everyone here confidence. He always says, ‘Don’t sit around waiting for people to say, you can do this.’ Just do it, because he just did it. That’s the Taika effect.”

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Taika David Waititi is known for wearing everything from technicolour dreamcoats to pineapple print rompers, and today he’s wearing a roomy teal and white Isabel Marant jumper. The mohair garment has the same wispy frizz as his hair, which curls like a wave of grey steel wool, and connects with a shorn salty beard.

A stylish silver fox, it wouldn’t surprise anyone if he suddenly announced he was launching a fashion label. He’s definitely a commercial animal, to the point of directing television commercials for Coke and Amazon, along with a fabulous 2023 spot for Belvedere vodka starring Daniel Craig. He also joined forces with a beverage company in Finland (where “taika” means “magic”) to release his coffee drinks. Announcing the partnership on social media, he flagged that he would be doing more of this kind of stuff, too (“Soz not soz”).

Waititi has long been sick of reverent portrayals of Indigenous people talking to spirits.

There’s substance behind the swank. Fashion is a creative outlet but he’s also bought sewing machines in the past with the intention of designing and making clothes, and comes from a family of tailors. “I learnt how to sew a button on when I was very young,” he says. “I learnt how to fix holes or patches in your clothes, and darn things.”

And while he gallivants around the globe watching Wimbledon or modelling for Hermès at New York Fashion Week, all that glamour belies a depth of purpose, particularly when it comes to Indigenous representation.

There’s a moment in his new movie where a Samoan player realises that their Dutch coach, played by Michael Fassbender, is emotionally struggling, and he offers a lament for white people: “They need us.” I can’t help but think Waititi meant something more by that line – maybe that First Nations people have ­wisdom to offer if others will just listen?

“Weeelllll, a little bit …” he says – but from his intonation, and what he says next, I’m dead wrong. Waititi has long been sick of reverent ­portrayals of Indigenous people talking to kehua (spirits), or riding a ghost waka (phantom canoe), or playing a flute on a mountain. “Always the boring characters,” he says. “They’ve got no real contemporary relationship with the world, because they’re always living in the past in their spiritual ways.”

A scene from Next Goal Wins, filmed earlier this year. (Alamy)

He’s part of a vanguard consciously poking fun at those stereotypes. Another is the Navajo writer and director Billy Luther, who met Waititi at Sundance Film Festival back in 2003, along with Reservation Dogs co-creator Sterlin Harjo. “We were this group of outsiders trying to make films, when nobody was really biting,” says Luther. “It was a different time. The really cool thing about it now is we’re all working. We persevered. We didn’t give up. We slept on each other’s couches and hung out. It’s like family.”

Waititi has power now, and is known for using Indigenous interns wherever possible (“because there weren’t those opportunities when I was growing up”), making important introductions, offering feedback on scripts, and lending his name to projects through executive producer credits, too, which he did for Luther’s new feature film, Frybread Face and Me (2023).

He called Luther back from the set of Thor: Love and Thunder (2022) to offer advice on working with child actors – “Don’t box them into the characters you’ve ­created,” he said, “let them naturally figure it out on their own” – but it’s definitely harder to get Waititi on the phone these days. “He’s a little bitch,” Luther says, laughing. “Nah, there’s nothing like him. He’s a genius. You just knew he was going to be something. I just knew it. He’s my brother.“

I’ve been asked to explicitly avoid political questions in this interview, probably because Waititi tends to back so many causes, from child poverty and teenage suicide to a campaign protesting offshore gas and oil exploration near his tribal lands. But it’s hard to ignore his recent Instagram post, sharing a viral video about the Voice to Parliament referendum starring Indigenous Aussie rapper Adam Briggs. After all, we speak only two days after the proposal is defeated. “Yeah, sad to say but, Australia, you really shat the bed on that one,” Waititi says, pausing. “But go see my movie!”

About that movie – the early reviews aren’t great. IndieWire called it a misfire, too wrapped in its quirks to develop its arcs, with Waititi’s directorial voice drowning out his characters, while The Guardian called it “a shoddily made and strikingly unfunny attempt to tell an interesting story in an uninteresting way”. I want to know how he moves past that kind of criticism. “For a start, I never read reviews,” he says, concerned only with the opinion of people who paid for admission, never professional appraisals. “It’s not important to me. I know I’m good at what I do.”

Criticism that Indigenous concepts weren’t sufficiently explained in Next Goal Wins gets his back up a little, though. The film’s protagonist, Jaiyah Saelua, the first transgender football player in a FIFA World Cup qualifying match, is fa’afafine – an American Samoan identifier for someone with fluid genders – but there wasn’t much exposition of this concept in the film. “That’s not my job,” Waititi says. “It’s not a movie where I have to explain every facet of Samoan culture to an audience. Our job is to retain our culture, and present a story that’s inherently Polynesian, and if you don’t like it, you can go and watch any number of those other movies out there, 99 per cent of which are terrible.”

*notes: (there is video clip in the article)

Waititi sounds momentarily cranky, but he’s mostly unflappable and hilarious. He’s the kind of guy who prefers “Correctumundo bro!” to “Yes”. When our video connection is too laggy, he plays up to it by periodically pretending to be frozen, sitting perfectly still, mouth open, his big shifting eyeballs the only giveaway.

He’s at his best on set. Saelua sat next to him in Honolulu while filming the joyous soccer sequences. “He’s so chill. He just let the actors do their thing, giving them creative freedom, barely interjecting unless it was something important. His style matches the vibe of the Pacific people. We’re a very funny people. We like to laugh. He just fit perfectly.”

People do seem to love working alongside him, citing his ability to make productions fresh and unpredictable and funny. Chris Hemsworth once said that Waititi’s favourite gag is to “forget” that his microphone is switched on, so he can go on a pantomime rant for all to hear – usually about his disastrous Australian lead actor – only to “remember” that he’s wired and the whole crew is listening.

“I wouldn’t know about that, because I don’t listen to what other people say about anything – I’ve told you this,” Waititi says. “I just try to have fun when there’s time to have fun. And when you do that, and you bring people together, they’re more willing to go the extra mile for you, and they’re more willing to believe in the thing that you’re trying to do.”

Yes, he plays music between takes, and dances out of his director’s chair, but it’s really all about relaxing amid the immense pressure and intense privilege of making movies. “Do you know how hard it is just to get anything financed or green-lit, then getting a crew, ­getting producers to put all the pieces together, and then making it to set?” Waititi asks. “It’s a real gift, even to be working, and I feel like I have to remind ­people of that: enjoy this moment.”

Source: The Age

By: Konrad Marshall (December 1, 2023)

[tiredsmashbros]

🍔 TIREDSMASHBROS INTRODUCTION

ˏˋ°•*⁀➷ W E L C O M E ! ! 🍔🍟🥤

🌿 howdy! my name is tomm + tsb. i use both he/him and they/them pronouns. i'm queer, demiboy + pan + aroace spectrum, and i am an adult, twenty-one ; jan. 10.

🪵 i'm a comic, furry, and multi-fandom artist. i specialize in digital art primarily, minor wood handcrafts, bracelets, or play on my silly harmonica. currently senior year in college.

🌻 i struggle with dyslexia, i apologize in advance for any minor grammar errors! i'm a bit slow responding to responses + mentions so i'd appreciate some patience.

↳ i speak english + spanish ↳ mexican + el salvadorian + texan

ˏˋ°•*⁀➷ C O M I C S ! ! 🍔🍟🥤

MARIO COMICS 🍄 ↳ DONE mario and luigi superstars ; sketch comic ↳ NEW !! DONE bowuigi rewritten ; sketch comic

SMG4 COMICS 🧢 ↳ DONE smg34: lip bite prologue {part one} ↳ DONE smg34: lip bite : chapter one {part two} ↳ smg34: lip bite : chapter two {part three} -> CURRENTLY WORKING ON

ˏˋ°•*⁀➷ F A N D O M S ! ! 🍔🍟🥤

SHOWS / FILMS 📺; {bold = fixated atm} ↳ my little pony, south park, animaniacs, looney tunes, mickey mouse, ducktales, felix the cat, bluey, total drama island, grojband, danvs, regular show, gravity falls, ninjago, teenage mutant ninja turtles, moomin valley, how to train your dragon, dragon ball, centuarworld, one piece, naruto, fullmetal alchemist, jojo's bizarre adventures, hlvr:ai, khonjin house, eddsworld, helluva boss, hazbin hotel, lackadaisy, trolls, better call saul/breaking bad, smg4, meta runner, murder drones, fairy oddparents: a new wish, popee the performer, the great gatsby, holes, the sixth sense, kingsman, matilda, beetlejuice, deadpool and wolverine

VIDEO GAMES 🎮 ; {bold = fixated atm} ↳ minecraft, five night at freddy's, cuphead, super mario bros, sonic, undertale, bendy and the ink machine, poppy playtime, baldi's basic, garten of banban, cult of the lamb, friday night funkin, pizza tower, parappa, amanda the adventurer, choo choo charles, epic mickey, rabbits, spyro, rayman, duck season, billie bust up, genshin, wuthering waves, god of war: ragnarok, red dead redemption

NOVELS + COMICS / MANGA 📚 ;{ bold = fixated atm} ↳ scott pilgrim, warrior cats, garfield, charlie brown, ganbare nakamura-kun, heartstopper, goosebumps series, mashle, usagi yojimbo, promised neverland, beastars, show-ha shoten, gokurakugai, + above

MISC ; {bold = fixated atm} ↳ dawko, matpat, fuhnaff, coryxkenshin, dashiexp, isaacwhy, yeptheboys, sam and colby, cg5, peso pluma, welcome home, sherlock & co

ˏˋ°•*⁀➷ T S B : S M G 4 A U ! ! 🍔🍟🥤

🍔 most may be familiar with me from my smg4 oc, TSB! a yellow, white, blue, burger-loving, cartoon individual with a propeller hat who's beloved for his silly personality. stick around and attempt to uncover the mysterious lore hidden within this animated maniac! if you want to know more, check out his tags, comics, and spotify playlist !!

↳ #tsb , #tsb askbox , #tsb theories , #tsari , #tsb memes ↳ official tsb reference sheet !!

↳ comic tsb: strange, unpredictable, dangerous! ↳ comic tsb: smg4, why don't you trust tsb with tari? ↳ comic tsb: outfit change w/ mr. puzzles! ↳ fanfic tsb: happy birthday, bluejay [2k] ↳ comic tsb: painting tutorial! ↳ NEW !! fanfic tsb: memories part one ↳ NEW !! comic tsb: memories part two

💛 thank you for stopping by, and hope you have a wonderful visit !!

[bunny-lovers]

Any unanswered questions? ^^

Hope you & your f/os have a great day & thank you for the ask! 😊 @mahitosoulmate

Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure - Does your fashion sense match with your f/o’s?

Yes, it definitely does since she & I are the same height.

One Piece - Would you ever go on a cruise with your f/o?

Yes, I would love to go on a cruise with Rumi.

Dragon Ball - You both get 1 wish. What do you and your f/o wish for?

We both wish for peace on earth.

Naruto - What animal do you think best describes your f/o?

A white rabbit.

Bleach - Does your f/o believe in the afterlife?

Yes, she does!

Dragon Quest - What would be your f/os RPG class? What about yours?

Rumi's RPG class would be the fighter class. I would be the cleric.

Hunter x Hunter - Is your f/o motivated more by money or by a sense of duty?

She's motivated more by a sense of duty.

Gintama - If you and your f/o met an alien how would you react?

I definitely stand behind Rumi while she's the brave one.

Fist of the North Star - Does your f/o have a catchphrase or a word they say often?

No, she doesn't.

Black Clover - Does your f/o believe in magic or are they the type to try and debunk it?

She would be the type to try & debunk it.

Kimetsu no Yaiba - What element do you think represents your f/o the best? (fire, wind, water, earth, etc…)

Earth!

Dr.Stone - What was your f/o’s favorite subject in school? Their least?

Her favorite school subject is PE. Her least favorite is math.

Haikyu!! - Do you watch sports with your f/o? Do you dress up and cheer on your teams?

Yes, we do watch sports! Yes, we do dress up & cheer on our teams.

My Hero Academia - What would be your f/os superhero name? If they’re a superhero, how would they react if you were a superhero too?

She would love my hero name & hang out with me after we both get done of the hero work.

[cant-help-but-self-ship]

𝓜𝐘 𝐅𝐈𝐂𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍𝐀𝐋 𝐎𝐓𝐇𝐄𝐑𝐒 :

✦•〰〰〰〰〰〰•★•〰〰〰〰〰〰•✦

» warning : this is one hell of a list ! feel free to browse at your own discretion ! i'll try to keep it updated as much as possible, please bear with me !

» note : keep in mind that though I may have f/os that are minors in the original / popular canon, they are not this age in my self ships . i do not condone anything illegal, and actively take steps to ensure i do not replicate anything, even in a fictional sense .

➽─────────❥ SHOWS && MOVIES

- Gabriel (Supernatural)

- Jack Sparrow (Pirates of the Caribbean)

- James Norrington (Pirates of the Caribbean)

- Davey Jones (Pirates of the Caribbean)

- Crowley (Good Omens)

- The Doctor (Doctor Who)

- Sherlock Holmes (Sherlock Holmes)

- Jason (Friday the 13th)

- Heimdall (Marvel Cinematic Universe)

- Peter, "001" (Stranger Things)

- Dracula (Bram Stoker's Dracula)

➽─────────❥ ANIMATED SERIES

- Alastor (Hazbin Hotel)

- Future Danny, " Dallas " (Danny Phantom)

- Lucas Lee (Scott Pilgrim Takes Off)

- Gideon Graves (Scott Pilgrim Takes Off)

- King Sombra (My Little Pony)

- Glam (Metal Family)

- Tom Lucitor (Star VS the Forces of Evil)

- Bill Cipher (Gravity Falls)

- Stanford Pines (Gravity Falls)

- Raphael (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles)

- Percy De Rolo (Vox Machina)

- Sylas Briarwood (Vox Machina)

- Bolin (Legend of Korra)

- Caine (The Amazing Digital Circus)

➽─────────❥ MUSICALS

- Hades (Hadestown)

- Sweeney Todd (Sweeney Todd Musical Movie)

➽─────────❥ ANIME && MANGA

- Fairy King Harlequin (Seven Deadly Sins)

- Dracule Mihawk (One Piece)

- Black Leg Sanji (One Piece)

- Fire Fist Ace (One Piece)

- Josuke Higashikata (JoJo's Bizarre Adventure)

- Yukio Okumura (Blue Exorcist)

- Yuki Sohma (Fruits Basket)

- Hatsuharu Sohma (Fruits Basket)

- Hatori Sohma (Fruits Basket)

- Gajeel Redfox (Fairytail)

➽─────────❥ BOOKS && COMICS

- Hua Cheng (Heaven's Official Blessing)

- Bruce Wayne (DC Comics)

- Konnor Kent (DC Comics)

- Damian Wayne (DC Comics)

- Stephen Strange (Marvel Comics)

- Oswald the Lucky Rabbit (Disney Comics)

➽─────────❥ MISCELLANEOUS

- Narinder (Cult of the Lamb)

- Moondrop (Five Nights at Freddy's)

- Bonnie Bunny (Five Nights at Freddy's)

- Springtrap (Five Nights at Freddy's)

- Catnap (Poppy Playtime)

- Bendy / Ink Demon (Bendy and the Ink Machine)

- Max (Sam and Max)

- Sans (Undertale)

- The Devil (Cuphead)

- Shadow (Sonic The Hedgehog)

[giggly-squiggily]

Energizer (Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure)

Hey hey guess who’s on her Stardust Crusader’s Brainrot? :D I love these two, and after falling down a rabbit hole of Jotaro and Kakyoin content, I’ve decided I wanted to make a fic of them! I hope you like it!

TW: Swearing- It’s Jotaro afterall

Summary: It’s late and Jotaro wants sleep. Kakyoin has other plans.

You’d think during the breaks between Stand User and relentless traveling, the Crusaders would take this time as an opportunity to relax.

And for the older members, it was. Right now Joseph and Avdol spoke quietly to one another at the Hotel diner while Polnareff snored away in his room.

Jotaro had similar plans as he shrugged, stretching out his arms while Kakyoin took his turn in their shared bathroom. He was exhausted- so much so he nearly passed out mid shower. Eyeing the bed, he wondered just how much sleep he was actually going to get before his mind grew guarded- waiting for the next attack.

Perhaps he should have had his guard up when the bathroom door opened then.

“GOTCHA!” Kakyoin attacked him like a bat out of hell, arms wrapped around Jotaro’s waist before both yanking them into the nearest bed. Amazing enough it didn’t break- this wouldn’t be the first time they’ve made that mistake. “Didn’t expect that, did you Jojo?”

“Good grief…” Jotaro rolled his eyes as he reached for Kakyoin’s arms, trying to pry them off. “How the hell do you have this much energy after everything today?”

“I drank an energy drink! The hotel sells them!” Kakyoin sounded giddy, blushing slightly when Jotaro raised an eyebrow at him. “It was cherry flavored…”

“You and your damn cherry addiction.” Jotaro rolled his eyes, once again failing to pull Kakyoin off. When the hell did he get this strong? Or perhaps Jotaro was just too tired to care? “Get off me already.”

“You sound grumpy.” Kakyoin rested his chin on his shoulder, smiling cheekily. “Want me to get you an energy drink too?”

“What I want is to sleep.” Jotaro elbowed him in an attempt to shake him off. “Go back to your own bed- you’re being weird.”

“Come now, don’t tell me you're suddenly feeling shy?” Kakyoin hugged him tighter, clinging like an octopus against Jotaro’s back and tossing a leg into the mix. “I just wanna hug my friend~ Can’t I do that, Jojo?”

“Okay, now you’re definitely being weird.” Jotaro reached out and gave Kakyoin’s knee a squeeze, grinning when the redhead squawked and flailed behind him. “I’ll give you five seconds to get off me or I’m tickling.”

“You wouldn’t dare.” Kakyoin sounded betrayed.

“I said what I said.”

They were in a stalemate- neither man spoke as they sized each other up. Jotaro wasn’t the type to go back on his word, and Kakyoin was stubborn when he wanted to be.

“You're bold, Jojo.” Kakyoin seemed like he was letting go, his grip easing up somewhat around the other. Jotaro felt rather smug. “That said, you failed to consider one important thing.” The hands coming off stopped at his sides.

Oh dear.

“I know you’re ticklish too.”

“Oh hell no don’t you fucking da-Aheahhahahahahhare!” Kakyoin’s fingers pressed into Jotaro’s ribs, dead center into that god awful spot he was cursed with. Immediately he brought his arms down in a vain attempt to block out the other, but Kakyoin was already latched on, refusing to budge as the brunette squirmed against him. “Sohohohohon of a bihihiihihitch!”

“Now now, don’t be rude, Jojo.” Kakyoin scowled gently, keeping one hand against Jotaro’s ribs while the other shot up to his armpit, pressing into the warm skin and earning a squawk of laughter. “Can’t you be a little nice? Hm?”

“Kihhihihihiss my ahahhahaahhahass! Gahhhahahahha Kahahhahahakyohoohoohohin!” Jotaro twisted and turned against the bed, trying to get onto his back. “Stahahahhahap ihihihihihit!”

“Why?”

“Yohoohohohoohu knoohohohohohow whhihihihiihihy!” He was on his back. Mission successful.

“Do I really? Truly?” Kakyoin dropped a hand to Jotaro’s stomach, pushing past his tanktop and clawing at his abs. “I’m gonna need a real reason, Jojo.”

Mission failed- this was a terrible idea. Jotaro wheezed as he shoved at the hands, bucking beneath the redhead as he was driven to near tears. “Fihihihihiihne it fuhhuhuuhuhcking tihihihihiihckles! Hahhahahahhahappy?”

“Very much so, thank you.” Kakyoin grinned as he relented, pulling his hands back and watching the other pant. “I’m always happy seeing you smile.”

“Gooohohood griehehef…” Jotaro reached for his hat to shied his face- blinking upon realizing he wasn’t wearing it. Instead he covered his already flushed expression with a hand, hoping the other didn’t catch the way his ears burned.

“Hm…you know- I didn’t get to try out your other tickle spots…” Kakyoin sounded almost dissapointed, sitting up again and kneeling over the other. “I wonder what would happen if I did…”

Little did Kakyoin know of the looming presence behind him. Jotaro only smiled as Star Platnuim pounced, dragging Kakyoin over to his own bed with wiggling fingers. “AH! AHehahhahahahahaha! Johohohoohohojohohohohoo! Hhehhehheehehlp mehheehhhehe!”

“You brought this on yourself, Kak.” Jotaro turned on his side as his stand gave Kakyoin’s knees and thighs a squeeze, making him squeal. “Now, let’s tire you out so we can get some sleep, yeah?”

Thanks for reading!

[the-illiterate-pirate]

Ohhh can I request day 2: Voice kink with Dio? Even though he probably gets turned on by the sound of his own voice, that narcissistic vampire haha

Thanks again! This is something new, as someone with a voice kink myself I don't think I explored it as much as I should, but I hope you enjoy <3 I might come back to this one too

Day Two: Voice Kink

You walked in on something you shouldn't have seen. Dio, standing over his father's bed, drink and medicine in hand. You had watched him add the mystery powder to his father's drink silently with an evil emotion behind his eyes. You could've ran away, turn your back and pretend like you saw nothing, but damn your clumsy feet.

An end table tipped over, the candelabra it held clanged loudly to the floor and caught his attention quickly. His wild amber eyes flew over to the cracked door, angry and shocked by the sudden noise. In that split second you felt your heart drop when your eye made contact with his, you quickly turned and fled.

If you were quick enough, maybe there was a chance to loose him and blend into the rest of the servants. With heart hammering in your chest, on shaking legs you tried to escape down stairs, you wobbled forward taking a right of the stairs, only to be pulled sideways into the library. In a blur the doors shut, and you were pressed into the wall, trapped between the delicate paper and a warm chest. You would shriek if a heavy hand didn't block your airways, leaving you dizzy and so much more shaky.

"My dear Y/n, what is the matter? You seem like you've seen a ghost?" His voiced oozed over you like bees honey, making you shudder in delight and fear. Surely now he could feel your heart beating out of your chest, rivalling a scared rabbits. "It's only me. Relax..." The hand on your thigh began to move, like to massage the tension from your body. But those eyes... As long as his stare was on you, you didn't think you could relax a bit.

He leaned down ever so slightly into your ear, his breath brushed against your skin, hot, coming in huffs like he was just running after you. "I know it was you watching me in my father's room."

Fuck.

"Are you worried about what I put in his drink? Were you thinking about running away to tell JoJo? Don't worry, it was only a new medicine to help him with his sickness. You believe me, right, my dear? You can't speak but I know your head still moves." You startled away from the new edge in his voice. Fighting back a tear, you nodded along.

"Good girl... You've always been my favorite servant." The hand once on your hip now slipped beneath your skirt, playing with the lace of your stocking where it met your soft skin. At first you didn't recognize it, simply overtaken by his seductive voice droning on in your ear. You just about died in his arms once he let loose a soft and oh so beautiful moan. "So eager to please me, so sweet, even to a filthy rat after it finds its way into the house. I believe you should be rewarded. Do give me the opportunity to please you, won't you, my dear?"

The hand moved up and pushed there fingers into your panties, finding your soaked and neglected clit. His hands were cold as they began on you, taking your bundle of nerves between his fingers to massaging it slowly. Your reaction was immediate, a silenced cry against his hand still on your mouth, pressing the back of your head deeper into the crook of his neck. Dio crooned at the sight and gave you a soft kiss on your neck, which turned violent as he started to bite at your skin.

"I can almost feel you getting wetter with every word I say. Do you enjoy the sound of my voice?" Nothing but another moan. His hand was a mess of your drool and fallen tears, he decided to make it worse by forcing his thumb into your mouth, hooking on your tongue to let you taste the salty mess you made. "You want me to berate you? Call you a whore? Would you enjoy that, too? Your practically falling apart already, you'd probably die if I gave you my cock already."

To tease you Dio's fingers went faster. They rubbed quick painful circles into your clit, never leaving to seek out your dripping core. The attention at your most sensitive area had your legs shaking violently. If not for the thigh grinding up between your legs you would've fell to the floor. "I'll be kind and keep talking until you cum. It shouldn't be too long now. What has it been, only a couple minutes? My, you're easy to please. You want my cock to finish you off? You only gotta ask for it." He grinned wickedly knowing you couldn't. His thumb pinned your tongue down harder, rubbing it when he felt like it. You were a drooling mess only making nonsensical noises as you humped against his hand. Dio rubbed your clit quicker feeding into your begining release, he kissed you passionately to swallow your screams of pleasure until there was no more. Your slick coated his hand as you stayed there, breathing into each other as the orgasmic haze settled in your mind.

Dio continued to kiss you sweetly, betraying his early actions, he wiped his hand clean on the skirt of your dress. "God, you're cute." He sighed against your mouth. "But I'm afraid I have my own problem now. Be a good servant and help me out, would you?"

[mydemonsdrivealimo]

people i want to get to know better

ty for the tags @inlocusmads @tveitertotwrites and @dr-colossal-pita

Last song: on your side by the last dinner party

Favorite colors: i don't have one but if anybody asks i either say black or sage green

Currently watching: nothing? idk im between shows rn which is kinda annoying but also letting me get more work done so

Last movie: jojo rabbit

Currently reading: babel, or the necessity of violence by r. f. kuang

Sweet/spicy/savory: spicy or savory

Last thing I Googled: [redacted] public library (was looking up my local library to get a book transfered bc i need it for the book club im in)

Current obsessions: my blorbos <3

Currently working on: i had to take a little break (yay getting injured) but ive been putting all my time and effort into the novel i recently started. i haven't really been doing any oh stuff but i at least plan to finish halloween when im feeling better

i think im too late to tag anyone new but please say that i tagged you if you haven't done it/need an excuse to!!

[have-some-candy]

HI! im the sideblog of @clown-around-and-find-out for... i guess being crazy over characters without clogging up main (bc i am incredibly annoying abt the characters i like).

i like, reply and follow from my main blog!

here are my fave f/o's

my main f/o's & comfort characters (under the cut)

Media in red = not part of the 'fandom'/not an active interest

Media in bold = don't consume the media and hate it but can't stand to separate myself from the character

Italicized = SUPER MEGA AUTISM BLAST...!

F/O's:

Phineas T. Ratchet - Robots (2005)

Toshinori Yagi - Boku no Hero Academia

Richard Hayden - Tommy Boy (1995)

Kuzco - Emperor's New Groove

Spamton G. Spamton - Deltarune

Edward Nygma - Batman

Reginald Tetra - Cemetery Mary

Hu Tao - Genshin Impact

Yoshikage Kira - Jojo's Bizarre Adventure

Mr. Snake - The Bad Guys

Jimmy Crystal - Sing 2

Man Ray - Spongebob Squarepants

Kishibe Rohan - Jojo's Bizarre Adventure

Ernesto de la Cruz - Coco (2017)

Sangonomiya Kokomi - Genshin Impact

Infinite - Sonic the Hedgehog

Shota Aizawa - Boku no Hero Academia

Ennard - FNAF

Serval - Honkai Star Rail

Julie Joyful - Welcome Home

Howdy Pillar - Welcome Home

Knuckles - Sonic the Hedgehog

Klara - Pokemon Sword

Megami Saikou - Yandere Simulator

Idia Shroud - Twisted Wonderland

Dr. Starline - Sonic the Hedgehog

Yukako Yamagishi - Jojo's Bizarre Adventure

Monika - Doki Doki Literature Club

Luocha - Honkai Star Rail

Ilima - Pokemon Sun/Moon

... Dr. Eggman - Sonic the Hedgehog

Bowser - Mario

Doralee Rhodes - Nine to Five (film)

Comfort Characters:

Kamek - Mario

Jevil - Deltarune

Pietro - Animal Crossing

Papyrus - Undertale

Sango Suzumura (Cure Coral) - Tropical Rouge Precure

Yunjin - Genshin Impact

March 7 - Honkai Star Rail

White Rabbit - Alice in Wonderland

Twyla Sophio - Cemetery Mary

Josuke Higashikata - Jojo's Bizarre Adventure

Doodlebob - Spongebob Squarepants

Arataki Itto - Genshin Impact

Amy Rose - Sonic the Hedgehog

Loretta Geargrinder - Robots (2005)

[frees-erotic-writings]

Official muse list

Note: A name that's been italicized is an oc that belongs to someone else, a name that's been boldened, and italicized is mine.

RWBY: Team RWBY, Team CORS, Pyrrha Nikos, Nora Valkyrie, Coco Adel, Velvet Scarletina, Fox Alister, Team NDGO, Jaune Arc, Sun Wukong, Glynda Goodwitch, Ilia Amolita, Kali Belladonna, Ghira Belladonna, Sienna Khan, Winter Schnee, Willow Schnee, Raven Branwen, Summer Rose, Vernal, Emerald Sustrai, Cinder Fall, Salem (Human/Grimm), Grimm, Hozukimaru Wukong, Lyon, Jade, Meryl, Jade, Baelz Zirconia, Zephyr Nikos Zirconia, Lupin Nikos Zirconia, Scarlet Nikos Zirconia, Bast Belladonna Zirconia, Shrike Branwen Zirconia, Desmond Caine, Pewter Pegasi, Wes Goldmane, Terra Firma, Rose Crimson, Crimson Wilde, Sable Leone, Jade Inaba.

Naruto: Naruto Uzumaki, Sakura Haruno/Uchiha, Ino Yamanaka, Hinata Hyuuga/Uzumaki, Hanabi Hyuuga, TenTen, Temari, Anko Mitarashi, Kurenai Yuuhi, Tsunade Senju, Konan, Sarada Uchiha.

Bleach: Rukia Kuchiki, Yoruichi Shihoin, Orihime Inoue, Tatsuki Arisawa, Rangiku Matsumoto, Soi-Fon, Retsu Unohana, Isane/Kyone Kotetsu, Nanao Isei, Tier Harribell, Neliel Tu Odelschwanck, Apace, Sun-Sun, Mila Rose.

One Piece: Nami, Nico Robin.

Attack on mid: Mikasa Akerman, Annie Lionheart, Potato Girl.

Hellsing: Seras Victoria, Rip Van Winkle, Zorrin Blitz.

Overloard: Albedo, Narberal Garma.

DragonBall: Bulma Briefs, Mrs Briefs/MILF/GILF, Chi-Chi, Android 18, Future 18, Android 21, Majin 21, Launch, Videl Satan, Frieza Force goons.

BNHA: Izuku Midoriya, Tsuyu Asui, Mina Ashido, Ochacko Uraraka, Momo Yayorozu, Jirou, Nejire Hado, Mitsuki Bakugo, Rumi Usagiama, Midight, Mt Lady, Nomu.

YU-GI-OH: Teá Gardner, Ishizu Ishtar, Mai Valentine, Black Magian Girl, Alexis Rhodes, Jasmine, Mindy, Akiza Izinski.

Game of Thrones: Denerys Targeryean.

Harry Potter: Harry Potter, Hermione Granger, Parvati Patil, Padma Patil, Ginney Weasely, Luna Lovegood, Cho Chang, Fleur Deacour, Nymphadora Tonks, Narcissa Malfoy, Bellatrix Lestrange.

Pokémon: Delia Ketchum, Jessie, Nurse Joy, Officer Jenny, Cynthia, Arezu, Nessa, Bea, Nemona, Penny, Sada.

Sailor Moon: All inner and outer Senshi

Cyberpunk: V, Panam Palmer, Judy Alvares, Lucy, Joey Brass.

Claymore: Clare, Cassandra, Jeane.

Rosario + Vampire: Outer Moka, Inner Moka, Mizore Shirayuki, Tsurara Shirayuki, Kurumu Kurono, Ageha Kurono, Ruby Tojo, Nokonome.

Jojo's Bizzare Adventure: Jolene Cujoh.

Ghost in the Shell: Motoko Kusanagi

Avatar/TLOK: Toph Beifong, Katara, Suki, Azula, Zuko, Mai, Ty-lee, Ju Dee, Korra, Asami Sato.

Familiar of Zero: Kirche Zerbst, Henrietta de Tristain, Tiffania Westwood, Tabitha, Longvelle.

Helluva Boss: Millie, Loona, Verosika.

DC comics: Starfire, Blackfire, Raven (Rachel Roth), Terra, Wonder Woman, Batgirl (Barbra Gordon), Catwoman, Power Girl, Harley Quinn, Poison Ivy.

Marvel Comics: Gwen Stacy, Marry Jane Watson, Felicia Hardy/Black Cat, Rogue, Kitty Pride, Storm, Mystique.

Scooby-Doo: Velma, Daphne, Hex Girls.

Dragon Age: Cousland, Hawke, Inquisitor, Morrigan, Lelliana, Anora, Merrill, Isabella, Cassandra, Bethany Hawke, Sera, Josephine Montillyet.

Mass Effect: Sheppard, Liara T'Soni, Aria T'Loak.

Disney/Pixar/Dreamworks: Princess Jasmine, Esmerelda, Arora, Belle, Ariel (human), Kida, Chel, Helen Parr/Elastigirl, Violet Parr, Pocahontas, Nani Pelakai, Moana, Mavis Dracula, Jessica Rabbit.

Star Wars: Ahsoka Tano, Shaak-Ti, Barriss Offee, Luminara Unduli, Ayla Seccura, Bastilla Shan, Mission Vao, Juhanni, Kira Carsen, Vette, Vaylin, Lana Beniko, Darth Talon, Rey Palpatine.

Ben 10: Gwen Tennyson, Charmcaster.

Final Fantasy: Yuna, Rikku, Payne, Tifa Lockheart, Yuffie Kisaragi, Aireth Gainsborough, Ashelia B'Nargain Dalmasca, Fran, Lightning/Clair Farron, Y'shtola Rhul.

LoZ: Link, Zelda, Imp Midna, Twilight Princess Midna, Urbosa.

Fire Emblem: Lyndis, Minaeva, Shiida, Robin/Grima (M/F), Cordelia, Tharja, Olivia, Corrin (M/F), Camilla, Hinoka, Kageru, Dorothea, Edelgard, Lysithea.

Overwatch: Tracer, Dva, Mercy, Pharah, Sombra, Widowmaker, Ashe.

Elder Scrolls: Aela the Huntress, Mjoll the Lioness, Serana Volkihar.

Fantasy/D&D: Pike Trickfoot, Vex'ahlia, Keyleth, Delilah Briarwood, Nott the Brave, Yasha, Beau, Jester Lavorre, Imogen, Laudna, Werewolves, Mind Flayers, Orcs, The Devils of Emon, Nadûr, Korrin.

Kuroneiu: Olga Discordia, Cloe Discordia.

Action Taimanin: Ingrid, Oboro, Asagi Igawa, Sakura Igawa, Yatsu Murasaki.

Kingdom Hearts: Aqua, Anti-Aqua, Kairi, Xion, Namine, Larxene, Arlux.

This list is subject to change, as there may be muses I've forgotten, or decide I don't want to write for anymore.

[howardhawkshollywoodannex]

Sam Rockwell as Chuck Barris in Confessions of a Dangerous Mind (2002). Sam was born in San Mateo, between San Francisco and San Jose, and has 107 acting credits from a 1988 episode of The Equalizer to three 2022 credits. He has four entries among my best 1,001 - Three Billboards Outside Ebbing Missouri, Jojo Rabbit, Blue Iguana, and Richard Jewell.

His other notable credits include Last Exit to Brooklyn, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Box of Moonlight, Celebrity, The Green Mile, Charlie's Angels, The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, Frost/Nixon, Everybody's Fine, Iron Man 2, Cowboys and Aliens, Vice (as George W Bush), eight episodes of Fosse/Verdon (as Bob Fosse) and 44 episodes of F Is for Family

[movedto-bunny-lovers]

JJBA and Kimetsu no Yaiba for both!

Hope you & your f/os have a wonderful weekend & thank you for the ask! 😊💛 @selfshippery

Keigo

Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure - Does your fashion sense match with your f/o’s?

No, it doesn't since Keigo likes his fashion sense an expensive fashion style

Kimetsu no Yaiba has been answered

One Piece - Would you ever go on a cruise with your f/o?

Yes, I would like to go on a cruise with Keigo

Dragon Ball - You both get 1 wish. What do you and your f/o wish for?

We both wish for happiness

Naruto - What animal do you think best describes your f/o?

A male Northern Cardinal

Dragon Quest - What would be your f/os RPG class? What about yours?

Keigo would be the archer. I'd be the healer

Black Clover - Does your f/o believe in magic or are they the type to try and debunk it?

He would try & debunk it

Haikyu!! - Do you watch sports with your f/o? Do you dress up and cheer on your teams?

No, we don't watch sports

My Hero Academia - What would be your f/os superhero name? If they’re a superhero, how would they react if you were a superhero too?

He would love it & wants me to be his sidekick

Rumi

Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure - Does your fashion sense match with your f/o’s?

Yes, it definitely does since she & I are the same height

Kimetsu no Yaiba has been answered

One Piece - Would you ever go on a cruise with your f/o?

Yes, I would love to go on a cruise with Rumi

Dragon Ball - You both get 1 wish. What do you and your f/o wish for?

We both wish for peace on earth

Naruto - What animal do you think best describes your f/o?

A white rabbit

Bleach - Does your f/o believe in the afterlife?

Yes, she does!

Hunter x Hunter - Is your f/o motivated more by money or by a sense of duty?

She's motivated more by a sense of duty

Gintama - If you and your f/o met an alien how would you react?

I definitely stand behind Rumi while she's the brave one

Fist of the North Star - Does your f/o have a catchphrase or a word they say often?

No, she doesn't

Black Clover - Does your f/o believe in magic or are they the type to try and debunk it?

She would be the type to try & debunk it

My Hero Academia - What would be your f/os superhero name? If they’re a superhero, how would they react if you were a superhero too?

She would love my hero name & hang out with me after we both get done of the hero work

[litlbean]

⚠️Contains Spoilers!!!⚠️

The Old Grist Mill

I'm just going to go ahead and link this song because in my opinion it is one of the best songs in the whole series period.

I love how the beginning of the series makes no sense to first-time watchers but after you have watched it at least once, everything at the beginning of the first episode makes sense. It gives off the same vibes as Jojo's Bizzare Adventure's openings... The Tome of the Unknown style is in every single title screen and it makes me so aesthetically happy. It intensifies the melancholy-autumn mood that this whole show embodies and of course, the art style is just amazing. I don't think any other art style would fit this series better than this one. Can we just pause for a second and talk about how f*cking cool it is that this entire show is just one big circle? The opening scene when the narrator starts talking is Wirt falling into the frozen pond... How do people come up with stuff like this!? I wish more series/movies did this kind of stuff. It just opens the door to so many more theories and expands the lore just that much deeper. Also before this episode gets any further in I just want to mention: grist;

grain that is ground to make flour.

malt crushed to make mash for brewing.

2.useful material, especially to back up an argument.

grist for the mill — useful experience, material, or knowledge.

I just found it interesting that the episode is named after it ヾ(＾∇＾)

Beatrice is one of my favorite characters in this show besides the Frog. The name Beatrice has many meanings but the one I think that makes sense in relation to the storyline is the one from the bible: deriving from the Latin word Beatrix meaning "One who blesses others". We'll talk about her more later because she is definitely a very important character in the series and the amount of lore is just *french kiss*. I'm ashamed to admit that I missed this the first time around but it's now so funny to me that while Wirt is wallowing in his sorrows and talking versing poetry about his life- Greg is just in the background swinging around objects to see which one he could knock out the woodsman with the best.

I love rock facts. 〔´∇｀〕

🍬 The candy trail that Greg has and produces out of his pants that ultimately "leads the beast' to them (Wirt and Greg) could be taken as a metaphor for no good deeds go unpunished- or that all good things lead to the bad. The 'beast', or the bad in OTGW is led to the mill by Greg's candy trail that was supposed to lead Wirt and Greg back out of the Unknown. One of my favorite lines from the show is when Greg sees the 'beast' and says "You have beautiful eyes". Greg always looks for the good throughout the series and that makes me happy （＾ｖ＾）

 🐢 The Black Turtles ~

These guys show up everywhere. I recommend you read the short article about them from the wiki that you can find here. I love these things. They're so mysterious, rare, and never explained. It never is even explained why Wirt says later in the series to Auntie Whispers that he "came to burgle her turts!". Does Wirt know something to do with the turtles that the watcher doesn't or is he just being observant and trying to make up an excuse on the fly? (More about that later in the series) It's such a good example of an uncanny valley~ they are turtles but they're black..? Black turtles don't exist in real life** and the ones in OTGW seem either to be just a singular turtle (although its never specified ).

** I kind of went down the Wikipedia rabbit hole and found out that "black" turtles do exist. Okay, so they're not entirely black but they are at least darker in color than your average sea turtle. Even farther down the rabbit hole, I started to find some things about Chinese Astrology and what certain constellations mean to them. The one that I found is the most 'relevant' (a.k.a I think it just matches the theme of OTGW the best). This is kind of complicated because of course, everything is disputed because legends and myths are always disputed so I'll try to explain this in the least confusing way possible: So the moon travels around the earth in a total of 27.32 days. Scientists track this progress by calculating the longitudes along the orbit (called an ecliptic) and then split it up into 28 different segments called Mansions or Stations (and sometimes even houses for some reason?). Anyways, ost often these were used by ancient cultures as part of their calendar systems. One of these cultures is ancient China. There's more... "The 28 Lunar Mansions are divided into four clusters, with each cluster made up of seven constellations"... There's a lot of math involved in all of this and I'm not an astronomer so I'm not sure how all of these connect but anyways I will put a pretty picture to kind of give you an idea of what I'm talking about here. Now... how does this connect to OTGW? Well, 2 things: 1. All of these Moon Stations make up "The Black Tortise of Winter" which according to this Wikipedia passage states that the Black Tortise corresponds to astrology and traveling to the underworld to guide people. 2. The 11th Moon Station of the "Black Tortoise of Winter" has a Chinese character meaning Emptiness. (pictured below)

I think that all of this concentrated around emptiness and the underworld largely reflects the ideas of the Unknown in OTGW. The Unknown is like a different world where people who are lost go to never be seen again. Kind of like Hell or the underworld. It's vast and has very few inhabitants. The turtles showing up in the movie could be almost like a guiding figure.

I appreciate the fact that the 'beast' in the beginning is Beatrice's dog. I just love dogs and that little extra added touch for the whole full-circle vibe of this show just makes me happy. "Aint that just the way" Burdens and burdens that are needed of bearing are mentioned in this episode and then never again but I still want to acknowledge that the Woodsman kind of predicts that Wirt will take on most of the problems in this show following this episode. Taking the blame, solving problems, etc., etc. which is most likely the reason why he gets turned into an adle wood tree first before ultimately Greg does. Kind of a statement piece on how difficult it is being an older child and looking after your younger siblings. This whole sentiment of "oh, your younger sibling is too young and doesn't understand, and therefore shouldn't get blamed" really can affect the elder sibling and like Wirt in the end, make them lose hope over time. Getting blamed for other people's problems is a tough situation and I think that way too many eldest children get put in the same boat. Especially at younger ages, this can cause severe problems later on down the line. I love the frog. I also love this drawing by @wabidrawbi 

keep drawing friends. you're doing amazing <3 XOXO

[wintvies]

What your fav movie? :3

oh i have a LOT of favourite movies. asking me this was a mistake i will now talk forever.

i love war movies with anti-war messages, one of my favourites were the pianist and all quiet on the western front! don’t know if i can add jojo rabbit to this list, but i will. 🤭 loved that movie.

i also absolutely love movies about darker topics with great cinematography!!!! one of my favourites are christiane f., last night in soho, the shining, fight club, black swan, taxi driver and the craft!!!

i also loved the truman show, girl interrupted and perfect blue. i’m actually the number one junji ito fan🤭

[alexlacquemanne]

Aout MMXXIII

Films

L'Appel de la forêt (The Call of the Wild) (2020) de Chris Sanders avec Harrison Ford, Omar Sy, Karen Gillan, Dan Stevens et Bradley Whitford

Indiscret (Indiscreet) (1958) de Stanley Donen avec Cary Grant, Ingrid Bergman, Cecil Parker, Phyllis Calvert et David Kossoff

Jojo Rabbit (2019) de Taika Waititi avec Scarlett Johansson, Roman Griffin Davis, Thomasin McKenzie, Taika Waititi, Sam Rockwell et Rebel Wilson

Le Verdict (The Verdict) (1982) de Sidney Lumet avec Paul Newman, Charlotte Rampling, Jack Warden, James Mason, Milo O'Shea, Lindsay Crouse et Ed Binns

Mondwest (Westworld) (1973) de Michael Crichton avec Yul Brynner, Richard Benjamin, James Brolin, Dick Van Patten, Anne Randall, Majel Barrett et Terry Wilson

La Grande Lessive (!) (1968) de Jean-Pierre Mocky avec Bourvil, Francis Blanche, Roland Dubillard, Jean Tissier, Michael Lonsdale, R. J. Chauffard, Jean Poiret, Karyn Balm et Alix Mahieux

La Traversée de Paris (1956) de Claude Autant-Lara avec Jean Gabin, Bourvil, Louis de Funès, Jeannette Batti, Georgette Anys, Robert Arnoux, Laurence Badie et Myno Burney

Austerlitz (1960) d'Abel Gance avec Pierre Mondy, Jean Marais, Martine Carol, Elvire Popesco, Georges Marchal, Vittorio De Sica, Michel Simon, Rossano Brazzi, Claudia Cardinale et Leslie Caron

La Bride sur le cou (1961) de Roger Vadim avec Brigitte Bardot, Joséphine James, Mireille Darc, Edith Zetline, Michel Subor, Jacques Riberolles et Claude Brasseur

Hiroshima, mon amour (1959) d'Alain Resnais avec Emmanuelle Riva, Eiji Okada, Bernard Fresson, Stella Dassas et Pierre Barbaud

Quo vadis (1951) de Mervyn LeRoy avec Robert Taylor, Deborah Kerr, Leo Genn, Peter Ustinov, Patricia Laffan, Buddy Baer et Finlay Currie

La Classe américaine : Le Grand Détournement (1993) de Michel Hazanavicius et Dominique Mézerette avec Christine Delaroche, Evelyne Grandjean, Marc Cassot, Patrick Guillemin, Raymond Loyer, Joël Martineau, Jean-Claude Montalban, Roger Rudel et Gérard Rouzier

Beethoven 3 (Beethoven's 3rd) (2000) de David M. Evans avec Judge Reinhold, Julia Sweeney, Joe Pichler, Michaela Gallo, Mike Ciccolini, Jamie Marsh et Danielle Keaton

The Big Short (2015) d'Adam McKay avec Christian Bale, Steve Carell, Ryan Gosling, Brad Pitt, Melissa Leo, Rafe Spall et Marisa Tomei

GoldenEye (1995) de Martin Campbell avec Pierce Brosnan, Sean Bean, Izabella Scorupco, Famke Janssen, Joe Don Baker, Judi Dench, Robbie Coltrane, Tchéky Karyo et Alan Cumming

The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014) de Wes Anderson avec Ralph Fiennes, Tony Revolori, F. Murray Abraham, Saoirse Ronan, Mathieu Amalric, Adrien Brody, Willem Dafoe et Jeff Goldblum

Le Hussard sur le toit (1995) de Jean-Paul Rappeneau avec Juliette Binoche, Olivier Martinez, Claudio Amendola, Isabelle Carré, François Cluzet, Jean Yanne : le colporteur juif et Pierre Arditi

Heat (1995) de Michael Mann avec Al Pacino, Robert De Niro, Val Kilmer, Tom Sizemore, Diane Venora, Amy Brenneman, Dennis Haysbert, Ashley Judd, Mykelti Williamson et Natalie Portman

Excalibur (1981) de John Boorman avec Nigel Terry, Helen Mirren, Nicol Williamson, Cherie Lunghi, Nicholas Clay, Paul Geoffrey, Robert Addie, Gabriel Byrne, Patrick Stewart et Liam Neeson

Le Grand Chantage (Sweet Smell of Success) (1957) d'Alexander Mackendrick avec Burt Lancaster, Tony Curtis, Susan Harrison, Martin Milner, Sam Levene, Barbara Nichols et David White

Séries

Castle Saison 2, 3

Rire et Châtiment - Le Flic fantôme - La Guerre des cuisines - Doublement Mort - Espion d'un jour - Présumé coupable - Mort par prédiction - Rencontre avec le passé - Duel à l'ancienne - Anatomie d'un assassinat - Triple Tueur - Célèbre à tout prix

Happy Days Saison 1

Échec ou mat - La Première Bagnole - La Première Cuite de Richie - Une visite inattendue - Le Festival rock - Le Club des Démons - Fonzie vient dîner - Nuit au palace - Une rupture difficile - Qui perd gagne - Rendez-vous surprise - Le Tatouage de Richie - Richie et les beatniks - Le Garçon d'honneur - De la bagarre dans l'air - Un homme prudent

Inspecteur Barnaby Saison 11

Les Noces de sang - Fusillé à l'aube - L’assassin est servi - Macabres Découvertes - Une alliance maléfique - Le Crépuscule des héros - Le Mystère du bois des moines

Downton Abbey Saison 1, 2

Question de succession - Le Nouvel Héritier - Le Diplomate turc - Entre ambitions et jalousies - La Rumeur se propage - La Fiancée de Matthew - L'Entraide - La Maison des intrigues - Portés disparus - Nouvelles Vies - Épidémie - L'Esprit de Noël

Affaires sensibles

Mai 68, le coup de théâtre du Général de Gaulle - Autoroutes françaises : la machine à cash - William Randolph Hearst : de Citizen Kane à Donald Trump - Orson Welles - La guerre des mondes - François Fillon et le "Pénélopegate" - Contrat Première Embauche, mieux que rien ou pire que tout ? - 31 août 1997 : mort d'une princesse anglaise

Kaamelott Livre II

Spangenhelm - Les Alchimistes - Le Dialogue de Paix - Le Portrait - Silbury Hill - Le Reclassement - Le Rassemblement du Corbeau - Les Volontaires II - Le Terroriste - La Chambre - Le Message Codé - La Délégation Maure - L’Enlèvement de Guenièvre - Les Classes de Bohort - Le Monde d’Arthur - Les Tuteurs - Les Jumelles du Pêcheur - Sept Cent Quarante-Quatre - L'Absolution - Les Misanthropes - La Cassette - Plus Près de Toi - La Révolte - Sous les Verrous - Séli et les Rongeurs - Un Roi à la Taverne II - L'Ancien Temps - Le Passage Secret - Les Mauvaises Graines - La Garde Royale - L'Ivresse - Mater Dixit - Spiritueux - La Ronde - Merlin l'Archaïque - Les Exploités - L’Escorte II - Le Larcin - La Rencontre - Les Pigeons - O'Brother - La Fête du Printemps - La Voix Céleste - L'Invincible - Amen - Le Cadeau - Le Complot - La Vigilance d’Arthur - Les Chiens de Guerre - Always - Arthur in Love - Excalibur et le Destin - L'Absent - The Game - La Quinte Juste - La Fumée Blanche - Unagi II La Joute Ancillaire - Le Donneur - Le Jeu du Caillou - L'Alliance - Le Secret d'Arthur - Aux Yeux de Tous - Immaculé Karadoc - La Morsure du Dace - Les Neiges Eternelles - Des Hommes d'Honneur - Stargate - Feue la Vache de Roparzh - Les Vœux - Le Pédagogue - Perceval et le Contre-Sirop - L'Oubli - L'Ambition - Le Poème - Corpore Sano - Le Havre de Paix - L'Anniversaire de Guenièvre - La Botte Secrète II - Les Parchemins Magiques - L'Enragé - Trois Cent Soixante Degrés - Pupi - Vox Populi II - Le Rebelle - Les Félicitations - Les Paris - Les Esclaves - Les Drapeaux - Le Guet - Le Sort Perdu - La Restriction - La Corde - Le Tourment II - Le Plat National - Le Temps des Secrets - La Conscience d'Arthur - La Frange Romaine - L'Orateur - Les Comptes

Le Coffre à Catch

#127 : Dream Match + Kozlov : J'en ai rêvé, Teddy l'a fait ! - #128 : La ECW et Mark Henry nous gâtent de cadeaux ! - #129 : Le pire main event de la ECW : Agius pète un câble ! - #130 : On démarre l'année ECW 2009 avec le Connard du Catch ! - [LIVE] Coffre à Catch Hors-série : ECW December to Dismember

Columbo Saison 1

Accident

Idéfix et les Irréductibles

Labienus tu m'auras pas - Une affaire corsée - Turbine encrassée - Une Ibère dans la ville

Biographies WWE Saison 1

Bret "The Hitman" Hart

Batman, la série animée Saison 1

Les Enfants de la nuit - Version originale - Les Oubliés du Nouveau Monde - Fugue en sol Joker

Spectacles

One Night Only : The Bee Gees Live in Las Vegas (1997)

Livres

Vies des douze Césars de Suétone

Détective Conan : Tome 12 de Gôshô Aoyama

Détective Conan : Tome 13 de Gôshô Aoyama

Hero Corp Tome 3 : Chroniques - Partie II de Simon Astier et Francesca Follini

Les 7 prochaines vies de Greta Thunberg : Que sera, dans vingt cinq ans, Greta devenue ? de Fréville

[smokeybrandreviews]

Winds Over Neo-Tokyo

I just read that Taika Waititi's live action remake of Akira is still in the works and, f*ck, if I'm upset about it. his cat is the absolute wrong choice fr this film. And i say film because he wants to remake the anime classic, not re-adapt he manga it’s based on. This sh*t is devastating because Waititi doesn’t have the chops to deliver on the entire vision that is Akira. Mans doesn’t make epics. He makes cute little character dramas, wrapped in clever humor. That’s fine for, say, a There film or Jojo Rabbit but Akira? Bro, there is nothing “fun” about Akira. It’s an existential hellscape masquerading as a nihilistic, dystopian, nightmare. Nothing Taika has ever made, makes me believe he can deliver on such heady material. That said, there are several directors that i think could and i wanted to highlight them here.

Denis Villeneuve

I think, aesthetically, Deni is the best choice for this sh*t. He’d bring the spirit of  Katsuhiro Otomo’s masterpiece, but gift us a more epic and cinematic visual presentation. He’d do what he did with Blade Runner, i think, and give us something very special. That said, mans is busy finishing up the best Dune adaption to date so i get why he’s not tied to this picture. Such a goddamn shame, that.

Alex Garland

Ex Machina and Annihilation. That’s it. That’s the pitch. If I'm objective and not completely up Denis’ ass because of how goddamn gorgeous his films are, it’s Alex Garland. This man has proven he can do Cyberpunk with Ex Machina and delivered some uniquely grotesque body horror with Annihilation. he less said about Men the better but, even in that weirdly pretentious train wreck, you can see the potential to deliver on the existential trauma everyone suffers from in Neo Tokyo.

Robert Rodriguez

Book of Boba Fett aside, Rodriguez delivered Alita: Battle Angel and nailed that sh*t perfectly. Alita is, arguably, the best anime adaption we have o date and that was all thanks to Rodriguez respecting the source materiel. I think he could deliver a very solid, very faithful, Akira adaption, though, he wouldn’t be my top pick.

Neill Blomkamp

I don’t understand how this dude wasn’t the first one called for this project. I mean, have you seen his catalog? Elysium, alone, nails the emotional tone necessary to bring Tetsuo’s journey to the big screen and dude’s sci-fi sensibilities are unassailable. District 9. Chappie. Everything out of Oats Studios. He’d do Neo Tokyo mad justice. Blomkamp is the obvious choice and he didn’t get a meeting? Really?

Leigh Whannell

Leigh is probably the best fit for his film in terms of experience , availability, and budget. This man has worked wonders with nothing and all of his films feel tactile, like they use way more practical effects than they actually do. Plus, his background in horror will go along a way to delivering that Tetsuo meltdown in the Olympic Arena at the climax. If you’re not convinced, go watch Upgrade and tell me this man can’t deliver a fantastic Akira adaptions for pennies on the dollar of what it will take Taika.

Chad Stahelski

The other half of the brain trust that gave us John Wick, Stahelski has proven himself to be one of the best action directors in the business. I think that level of creativity lends itself to he stylized nature of an anime adaption but, specifically, Akira. Some of the brilliant set pieces he dreamed up in the John Wick series go a long way to lending confidence in his ability to capture the gritty, urban, feel of the Cyberpunk genre.

Michael B. Jordan

And the dark horse entry bringing up the rear! Jordan is a card-carrying weeb and he can actual direct his ass off. Creed III is dope as f*ck and that scrap at the end was brilliant. Mans literally said, out loud, he took from anime like Megalobox, Naruto, Hajime No Ippo, and Dragon Ball Z to make that happen. What that says to me is he knows his sh*t, that he would treat this adaption seriously and give us something a fan would want to see.

If i had my pick, i think Garland or Blomkamp should be directing this production. They definitely have the chops in terms of experience and vision to give us something really special. It’s insane to me that f*cking Taika Waititi is the guy in charge of bringing one of the most influential films, not just an anime classic, to live action. The same f*cking guy who sh*t the bed with Thor IV. The same f*cking guy who played a fat, brown, imaginary Hitler. Like, this man makes quirky comedies and you want him to helm the entire production to one of the bleakest films ever made? Really? I’m not trying to say Waititi is bad at his job because he isn’t. I love Jojo Rabbit. I love Thor: Ragnarok. I love What We Do in the Shadows and Reservation Dogs. None of this sh*t screams Akira to me. Dude’s out of his depth with that material and I'm terrified he’s going to make it some goofy, juvenile, chuckle-fest when it’s not supposed to be at all. Now, if we're talking a Bartkira adaption, Waititi might just be perfect for that...