It’s been a whirlwind 24 hours for Pokémon‘s greatest mascot.
Following up on Omega Underground‘s report that Legendary’s live-action Detective Pikachu movie has been earmarked for a production start in London sometime next year, That Hashtag Show brings word of the studio’s alleged shortlist. And let’s just say Legendary are aiming for the stars when it comes to casting that chubby, yet oddly lovable rodent.
Based on The Pokémon Company’s Great Detective Pikachu video game, we’re now learning that the Detective Pikachu movie has whittled down its wishlist to four big-name actors: Hugh Jackman (Logan), Ryan Reynolds (Deadpool), Mark Wahlberg (Transformers) and Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson (Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle). THS’ report goes on to stress that none of those individuals have actually met about the role as yet, but Legendary is seemingly keen to cast a voice actor before filming begins in 2018.
Sporting a Sherlock Holmes-styled deerstalker cap, this is the first time that Detective Pikachu will be seen communicating with humans in a live-action setting, and it’s no secret that Legendary’s banking on the runaway success of Pokémon GO.
That being said, the video game movie has been a notoriously difficult nut to crack. Many have tried and failed to repackage a pixelated hit into a solid, compelling film – think Assassin’s Creed and Super Mario Bros. – but Legendary brass can be confident in the knowledge that Nintendo’s electrifying little critter will resonate with children, as he’s done since 1996.
Behind the lens for Detective Pikachu is Rob Letterman, who already has some knowledge about toying with an established property thanks to his work on Sony’s Goosebumps reboot. He’ll be working from a script penned by Nicole Perlman, who previously contributed to Guardians of the Galaxy and Captain Marvel for the folks at Marvel Studios.
