News
Umizaru/Say Hello to Black Jack's Sato Cuts Ties with Fuji TV
posted on by Crystalyn Hodgkins
Manga creator Shuho Sato (Say Hello to Black Jack, The Isle of TOKKOU) said on Friday that he is cutting ties with Fuji TV. As a result, Sato said there would "absolutely" be no more live-action films based on his Umizaru coast guard manga.
Sato claimed that Fuji TV flooded his agency with sudden interviews without an appointment. He said that the first time this happened, the chief producer of Fuji TV's news center did apologize to him. However, Sato said he received no apology when it happened again.
In addition, Sato claimed that Fuji TV sold Umizaru film-related books without a contract. Sato said on his Twitter account that he is very angry with Fuji TV and the company no longer deserves his trust.
Sato's Umizaru manga ran in Weekly Young Sunday magazine, and it follows the lives of divers in the Japanese Coast Guard. Four live-action films and two television dramas based on the manga have been produced. The fourth film, Brave Hearts Umizaru (pictured at right), stayed at #1 on the Japanese film charts for three straight weeks, and has earned more than US$91 million since its debut on July 14.
The first three films opened in 2004, 2006, and 2010, and the second and third films were the top-grossing Japanese live-action films of their respective years.
Sato had previously cancelled his publishing contract with Kodansha for his Say Hello to Black Jack medical manga in April. Sato then made all derivative usage of the title, both commercial and non-commercial, free of restrictions for anyone as of September 15. The manga has since been published in English on Amazon's Kindle device.
Source: RBB Today
