As one of the most renowned and commercially successful anime franchises of all time, Dragon Ball has set the bar high for every Shonen anime. The anime has been running for decades with new spinoffs like numerous video games, aesthetically pleasing merchandise, and countless successful anime films. However, the only eye-sore for the franchise is its 2009 live-action adaptation film, Dragon Ball Evolution.
The film featured iconic characters from the franchise like Son Goku, Bulma, Master Roshi, Chi-Chi, Piccolo, and many more. While every adaptation of Akira Toriyama is appreciated by the fans, they don’t talk of the live-action adaptation as it was such an eyesore to watch. As Toriyama-Sensei has left us, Justin Chatwin, the actor who played the role of Kakarot in the film, apologized to the creator for their box office bomb.
Goku Actor Apologizes To Akira Toriyama For Dragon Ball Evolution
The receiver of widespread criticism from the critics as well as the fans, Dragon Ball Evolution is considered to be the biggest disappointment in the entire Dragon Ball franchise. The primary reason for the film’s failure was how different it was from the source material, deviating heavily from the manga/anime’s well-established faithful original story.
In the process, the fan-favorite characters got butchered, resulting in a lackluster and unconvincing adaptation that failed to feature the very essence of the beloved series. The film has a rating of 2.5/10 on IMDb while doing pretty badly on Rotten Tomatoes with a 14% Tomatometer score as well.
The death of Akira Toriyama sent the world into deep grieving as he died at the age of 68 from an acute subdural hematoma on March 1, 2024. Following the creator’s death, Justin Chatwin, who portrayed the role of Son Goku took to his social media, where he apologized to the creator of the series.
Justin Chatwin took it to his Instagram, where in a now-expired story, he gave his tribute to Toriyama-Sensei and apologized for their 2009 box office bomb.
“Rest in Peace Brother. And sorry we messed up that adaptation so badly.”
The news was shared by a fan (@SLOplays) on X, and fans consoled the actor and stated their opinion on the film’s failure.
Bro this is sad it is not his fault at all
— Son Goku (@TazigeGoku) March 9, 2024
I think he did pretty well, I could see the eagerness in the film, he was just in a bad movie.
— Valky (@Valkyriori) March 9, 2024
I didn’t think he was aware of how bad that movie was 😭
— ZennoZX (@ZxZenno) March 9, 2024
We all have movies in our past that maybe weren't our best work, but hey, at least you can say you played Goku! Hope you have a good sense of humor about it. #DragonBallEvolution #rip pic.twitter.com/Fykh7WLuGa
— LaughwithAI (@LaughwithAI) March 9, 2024
Toriyama’s work and Dragon Ball are so loved and popular that even adaptations of the story Dragon Ball was based on reference him 💫
— MATMEEN 🇵🇸 (@incomplete_09) March 9, 2024
While the actor came forward with an apology to Akira Toriyama, the film’s writer also apologized for the abomination of a film that he came up with.
Dragon Ball Evolution’s Writer Apologizes For Their Box Office Disaster
In addition to the 2009 film’s displeasing CGI and VFX, the pace and its plot were immensely criticized by the fans, as the adaptation made a lousy attempt at condensing various complex arcs into one single narrative. The film did not feature great dialogue and it was full of plotholes and inconsistencies that made it incoherent and displeasing to watch.
Back in 2016, Ben Ramsey appeared in an interview conducted by Dragon Ball fan and writer, Derek Padula, he reached out to the writer of the film to seek an interview for the book he was writing. During this interview, the film’s writer apologized to fans around the world, which Padula uploaded on his website.
“I knew that it would eventually come down to this one day. Dragonball Evolution marked a very painful creative point in my life. To have something with my name on it as the writer be so globally reviled is gut wrenching. To receive hate mail from all over the world is heartbreaking. I spent so many years trying to deflect the blame, but at the end of the day it all comes down to the written word on page and I take full responsibility for what was such a disappointment to so many fans. I did the best I could, but at the end of the day, I ‘dropped the dragon ball.’”
“I went into the project chasing after a big payday, not as a fan of the franchise but as a businessman taking on an assignment. I have learned that when you go into a creative endeavor without passion you come out with sub-optimal results, and sometimes flat out garbage. So I’m not blaming anyone for Dragonball but myself. As a fanboy of other series, I know what it’s like to have something you love and anticipate be so disappointing.”
He concluded,
“To all the Dragon Ball fans out there, I sincerely apologize.
I hope I can make it up to you by creating something really cool and entertaining that you will like and that is also something I am passionate about. That’s the only work I do now. Best, Ben”
While Dragon Ball Evolution can never be redeemed in the eyes of the fans, it surely remains a prime example of how every franchise will have a black sheep that everyone would like to forget about.
Dragon Ball Evolution can be rented on Amazon.
