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A live-action Gundam giant robot movie is now in development

Get ready for the Universal Century.

Sean Hollister Senior Editor / Reviews
When his parents denied him a Super NES, he got mad. When they traded a prize Sega Genesis for a 2400 baud modem, he got even. Years of Internet shareware, eBay'd possessions and video game testing jobs after that, he joined Engadget. He helped found The Verge, and later served as Gizmodo's reviews editor. When he's not madly testing laptops, apps, virtual reality experiences, and whatever new gadget will supposedly change the world, he likes to kick back with some games, a good Nerf blaster, and a bottle of Tejava.
Sean Hollister
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Geoffrey Morrison/CNET

Pacific Rim showed that Japan's giant animated robots could work wonders in a live-action film. Now, Legendary Pictures is trying the formula again with one of Japan's most iconic mecha brands behind it. 

That's right: a Gundam live-action movie is now in the works, and may one day come to theaters near you.

Legendary and anime studio Sunrise (responsible for not only Gundam but also Cowboy Bebop, Escaflowne and more) announced the movie at Anime Expo 2018 today, according to our sister site Comicbook.com.

There really aren't any details except that Cale Boyter (one of the producers on Pacific Rim: Uprising) will be in charge, but the full press release hints that the movie may take place during the Universal Century timeline of Gundam, "an era in which humanity's growing population has led people to emigrate to space colonies" and wind up launching a war for independence from Earth.

Japanese citizens are no stranger to full-size mecha in real life, of course. Just this week, a toy company created the biggest plastic toy robot kit ever, and CNET's taken photos of some of the country's giant Gundam statues on several occasions now.

Tokyo's massive new Gundam robot statue blew our minds

See all photos