The Forbidden Man is a 2004 anime dystopian action film directed by Sunao Katabuchi and written by Katabuchi and American writer Andrew Kevin Walker. The film is about an amnesiac man in a dystopian future, who is prosecuted by a government officer for supposed witchcraft whilst ending up under the protection of an underground group plotting a resistance against the authoritave government. It stars the voices of Kazuhiko Inoue, Fumiko Orikasa, Mayumi Asano, Daisuke Namikawa, Michio Hazama, Yohei Tadano, Daisuke Sakaguchi, Ayako Kawasumi and Junichi Suwabe.
The film was produced by a group of companies forming Forbidden Man Film Committee and was animated by Madhouse. It was originally released in Japan by Asmik Ace Entertainment on July 10, 2004. It was a success at the box office, grossing over $124 million worldwide, becoming the first R-rated animated movie to cross $100 million at the box office, and received positive reviews from critics for its setting, characters, animation, visual design, and tone.
Paramount Pictures and LIVE Entertainment licensed the film for distribution in the U.S. and the latter company produced an English-language version of the film, which saw a release in theaters on July 29, 2005. This version featured the voices of Timothy Olyphant, Kari Wahlgren, Jessica Straus, John Leguizamo, Morgan Freeman, Jeff Bennett, Reno Wilson, Halle Berry and Robert Foxworth.
Plot[]
Coming soon!
Cast[]
| Character | Seiyū | English Dub Actor |
|---|---|---|
| Ash/Elias Caulfield | Kazuhiko Inoue | Timothy Olyphant |
| Keira | Fumiko Orikasa | Kari Wahlgren |
| Roxanne Buckley | Mayumi Asano | Jessica Straus |
| Joseph Fisher | Daisuke Namikawa | John Leguizamo |
| Austin Lipsey | Michio Hazama | Morgan Freeman |
| Sterling Hargraves | Yohei Tadano | Jeff Bennett |
| Max Spencer | Daisuke Sakaguchi | Reno Wilson |
| Claire Wallaker | Ayako Kawasumi | Halle Berry |
| Ralph Kirk | Junichi Suwabe | Robert Foxworth |
Additional Voices[]
- Wally Wingert
- Aileen Sander
- Nicholas Guest
- Kirk Thornton
- Jessica DiCicco
- Michelle Ruff
- Shawn Hoffman
- Yuri Lowenthal
- David Rasner
- Candi Milo
Release[]
Theatrical[]
The Forbidden Man was released to theaters across Japan by Asmik Ace Entertainment on July 10, 2004. During it's run in Japan, the film made back ¥4.6 billion at the box office.
LIVE Entertainment licensed the film for release in the United States, and commissioned an English-language dub of the film for the American release. The English dub of The Forbidden Man was directed by Jamie Simone of Studiopolis and produced by Eric Dolton, Jimmy Hodges and Garrett Fredrickson of LIVE Entertainment; Andrew Kevin Walker was brought back to write the English script, whilst the cast included Timothy Olyphant, Kari Wahlgren, Jessica Straus, John Leguizamo, Morgan Freeman, Jeff Bennett, Reno Wilson, Halle Berry and Robert Foxworth.
Paramount Pictures, LIVE's distributor, released the film in a wide release in the United States on July 29, 2005, with a $15 million P&A cost. A trailer for the film premiered before another Paramount Pictures film, Coach Carter, on January 14, 2005, which featured the song Scars by Papa Roach as the theme song.