Charles Melton is in final negotiations to play Kakashi Hatake in Lionsgate’s live-action Naruto adaptation.
The Hollywood Reporter first broke the news, and this update comes as Melton has been heavily speculated for weeks to be up for the role of Beast in Disney/Marvel’s X-Men, though no casting announcement has been made for that. The news also follows last month’s global casting search for the Naruto‘s three young leads.
Melton, who recently spoke to BLKCinema.com exclusively about his recent role in Her Private Hell, is set to play fan-favorite Kakashi Hatake, the mentor figure to Naruto and his friends. A search remains underway to cast the young actor who will play Naruto himself, as well as the other characters.
What is ‘Naruto’ about?
Naruto follows Naruto Uzumaki, a young ninja who dreams of leading his village while carrying the spirit of a nine-tailed demon fox inside him. The manga by Masashi Kishimoto ran in Japan’s Weekly Shonen Jump from 1999 to 2014 and spawned multiple anime series that aired for years.
Destin Daniel Cretton directs the adaptation, launching a global casting search for the film’s Team 7 leads, Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura, in July. At the time, Cretton said, “Kishimoto-sensei’s stories have inspired generations of fans around the world, and it’s an honor to bring his world and characters to the big screen in live action for the very first time. I’m thrilled to kick off this worldwide casting search for our Team 7 and to bring the incredible universe of Naruto to life!”
Kishimoto said at the time, “Right now, miracles are happening to me, one after another. My work, Naruto, is truly, truly becoming a Hollywood movie! And an even greater miracle is that the film will be directed by the one and only Destin Daniel Cretton. I still cannot believe it! If so many miracles have already come together, then let us hope for even more. I am eagerly looking forward to the miraculous encounters that will bring us extraordinary and passionate actors! I cannot wait to meet my characters in the film!”
Avi Arad, Ari Arad and Emmy Yu produce for Arad Productions alongside Jeremy Latcham. Cretton produces alongside Jeyun Munford through his company, Hisako.
Cretton, whose credits include Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, is coming off Spider-Man: Brand New Day, which has grossed roughly $2 billion at the global box office. Naruto is eyeing a production start around February 2027.
Featured image photo credit: Photo: Netflix
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