While talks with Garrett Hedlund(Tron: Legacy) to star in Warner Brothers' live-action Akira are still underway, that hasn't stopped them from going full force on two other crucial roles. Twitch reports that Gary Oldman and Helena Bonham Carter have been made offers to join the film as The Colonel and Lady Miyako respectively. Obviously this being at the offer stage means the studio is serious about adding them, perhaps because Hedlund isn't exactly a proven commodity as a big name star. Sure, Tron: Legacy turned out to be a minor hit, but he wasn't exactly the reason why.
The Colonel is probably the main antagonist of the story, outside of Tetsuo. He's the head of the secret government program designed to gauge the psychic ability of their test subjects. Back when the film was first announced, Morgan Freeman had been rumored for the role.
Lady Miyako was once a test subject herself, but joins the resistance movement against the government, becoming one of Kaneda's most loyal allies.
Jaume Collet-Serra(Orphan) is directing, based on a script recently revised by Steve Kloves(Harry Potter). As of now the plan is to kick off production on the first of two films early next year.
