We’ve heard rumors that the live-action One Piece series had quite the budget. Netflix was going all-in with this project; highlighted by the many collaborations and toys already set to release shortly after the series is on Netflix. They even have a Zara outfit line planned; a sign that they believe in this project.
And it seems that they also believed in everyone involved with the project. They worked closely with Eiichiro Oda to ensure that the project stayed true to his original vision. Showrunner Steven Maeda highlights that none of their hands were tied going in and they couldn’t “complain that money wasn’t spent” and they had “a healthy, healthy budget.”
Along with Oda-san’s oversight and cooperation and partnership, I think that we came up with the very best version of this show that we can. I can’t complaint that money wasn’t spent, I can’t complain that our hands were tied – we were able to make the show we wanted to make.
Steven Maeda
Peter Friedlander, who is the Netflix Head of U.S. and Canada for Scripted Series, highlighted that it was a production unlike any other. Not only was Oda heavily involved in the series, but he signed off on many elements they also were constantly coordinating with Netflix Japan and Korea to ensure the series remains true to what the series stands for.
We hadn’t done something like that before. The logistics of that – late-night calls, early morning calls, emails – it just changes the recipe of how you would help support a show, and I think that really was a special element, a little bit of the secret sauce, because we wanted to have different perspectives on the fandom.
Peter Friedlander
It’s definitely an exciting prospect to know just how far they are set to go with this project. Here’s hoping that also translates to the screen once the series finally releases next week. It’ll explore the East Blue saga in its first eight-episode run. One Piece is Tomorrow Studios’ big chance of seeing if live-action adaptations of anime can truly work.
Source: Variety via Twitter
