Why did the live-action Your Name fail?

In recent years, director Lee Isaac Chung's career has taken a surprising and dizzying turn. Just a decade ago, the University of Utah graduate was considering abandoning his career as an independent filmmaker to dedicate himself to teaching. However, his acclaimed film "Minari (2020)" changed everything. The work earned him Oscar nominations in the categories of Best Picture, Best Director and Best Screenplay in 2021, cementing his place in Hollywood and opening doors to high-profile projects such as directing episodes of "The Mandalorian" and the upcoming series "Star Wars: Skeleton Crew."

The summer of 2024 marked another milestone in his career with the release of "Twisters," a sequel to the iconic 1996 natural disaster film, which became a smash hit at the box office. However, not all of Chung's projects have come to fruition. In an exclusive interview with Empire, the director talked about the ambitious but frustrated attempt to adapt the acclaimed anime "Your Name" into a live-action version.

Chung was tapped in 2020 to direct the adaptation, working from a screenplay by Emily V. Gordon. As a fan of Makoto Shinkai's original film, considered one of the best anime in history, the director took on the challenge with enthusiasm. However, he soon found himself faced with insurmountable difficulties.

"I love the animated film," Chung said. "What I didn't imagine is how complicated it would be to adapt a Japanese animated film for American audiences. That was the goal that Toho set for us, but it's really difficult to do it." During the months of pandemic lockdown, Chung spent time developing the script, but eventually reached a point where the project became unrealizable. "I wrote something that I just couldn't shoot," he confessed.

With Chung's departure from the project, the responsibility of bringing the story to the big screen fell to Carlos López Estrada, director of "Raya and the Last Dragon". The live-action adaptation of "Your Name" continues to be one of the most anticipated projects, and anime fans hope that any new version respects the spirit of the original work, including its iconic soundtrack composed by Radwimps.

As he looks to the future, Chung reflects on his decisions with humility and gratitude. "Sometimes, things don't go as expected, but that doesn't mean it's not worth trying," he concluded. With several high-profile projects underway and his reputation growing, Lee Isaac Chung continues to prove that unexpected twists can be the greatest opportunities in a film career.

Source: EMPIRE