Warner Bro. shuts down 'Akira' production

"Akira" is running into trouble...again.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Warner Bros. has shut down production on the live action adaptation of the popular anime film over "casting, script and budget issues."

The remake has run around again.

Deadline is reporting that the budget, which is currently estimated to be around $90 million under director Jaume Collet-Serra ("Unknown"), is not the major stumbling block at the moment. The film was sporting a $150 million budget under former director Albert Hughes, who left the project in May.

Instead, the script seems to be the big issue now and a new writer is expected to be brought in for another take. The most recent draft was from David James Kelly, and before him "Harry Potter" scribe Steve Kloves took a stab at the remake.

The original anime film, like the manga series it was based on, follows story follows Kaneda, the leader of a motorcycle gang in Neo-Tokyo, who tries to save his friend Tetsuo from a military experiment gone awry. Kloves' version of the script reportedly moved the action from Neo-Tokyo to New Manhattan.

"Akira," if it escapes this latest setback, is expected to star Garrett Hedlund ("TRON: Legacy") as Kaneda, with Kristen Stewart ("Twilight"), possibly Ken Watanabe ("Inception") and Helena Bonham Carter ("Alice in Wonderland") all rumored to be in talks as well.

According to Deadline, the production was targeting an early March start. That is most likely no longer in the cards.

David Yates, Steve Kloves to adapt 'The Stand' into multiple films?

With the "Harry Potter" franchise now officially in the history books, Warner Bros. is apparently looking to turn director David Yates and screenwriter Steve Kloves lose on another adaptation, Stephen King's "The Stand."

The mini-series was released in 1994.

Drew McWeeny over at HitFix is reporting the studio is finalizing deals for Yates and Kloves to re-team on a multi-film adaptation of the best-selling novel.

First published in 1978, "The Stand" is one of King's most well known and celebrated novels, documenting the downfall of humanity following a deadly virus kills almost everyone. Those who survive find themselves drawn into two camps as part of a final battle between good and evil.

The novel was adapted into a 1994 television mini-series on ABC with a star-studded cast including Gary Sinise, Molly Ringwall, Rob Lowe, Ray Walston and Ruby Dee. Written by King himself, the six-hour mini-series is one of the more successful television adaptation of his works.