Masashi Kishimoto, the author and artist of the original Naruto manga, recently spoke out about the international reception of his popular Shonen Jump series. He also revealed the only time Naruto was changed to accommodate Western fandom.
French website La Nouvelle République was present when Kishimoto and Boruto co-creator Mikio Ikemoto attended an anime-themed event in France in late August. The two-day event, “Naruto & Boruto: Night at Konoha,” celebrated the Naruto anime series with film screenings and clips of fan-favorite chapters. Kishimoto and Ikemoto were on hand to answer questions about the original Naruto series and its sequel, Boruto. Among the various discussions, Kishimoto reflected on the international success of his blockhead ninja.
Naruto's Masashi Kishimoto Chooses Animator Who Can “Appeal More Foreigners”
“We don’t change the way we work based on international success,” Kishimoto said. “I personally heard a little about Naruto’s success outside of Japan, but I never measured its extent. The only time I took that into account was when the anime adaptation was released, when I chose an animator who could appeal to more people overseas.” Although the Naruto series has never been significantly adapted for the West, Kishimoto has drawn inspiration from a variety of Western media, such as The Matrix, Star Wars, and Back to the Future. He also admires Jean Giraud, the famous French artist who worked under the pen name “Mœbius.”
The difficulty of “Understanding the Heart of a Young Girl” created challenges for Sakura's growth.
Kishimoto also explained his difficulties in writing Sakura Haruno, who is considered a divisive character among Naruto fans. “She is a character that I did not know how to develop as she deserved,” he said. “But I found it difficult to understand the heart of a young woman, so I did not focus on that. That is something that Mikio Ikemoto achieved with Sarada, the main female character in Boruto. She is the character that I also found most successful graphically.”
Although Kishimoto is the creator of Naruto, Ikemoto has been the creative force behind the Boruto series. However, the two continued to work together on Boruto: Two Blue Vortex, which sometimes went against their original vision. Kishimoto also expressed great faith in Destin Daniel Cretton, the writer and director of the upcoming Naruto film for Lionsgate. The film's release date has yet to be determined, but the film's original screenwriter previously shared a positive update on the film's current production status.
Naruto, Naruto Shippuden, and Boruto: Naruto Next Generations are available on streaming services like Crunchyroll, Hulu, and Amazon Freevee. New and previous chapters of Boruto: Two Blue Vortex are available on Viz Media and the Manga Plus app. New release dates for the delayed Naruto 20th anniversary episodes have yet to be announced by animation studio Pierrot.
Naruto
Naruto Uzumaki, a mischievous teenage ninja, struggles to find recognition and dreams of becoming Hokage, the leader of the village and the strongest ninja.
Created by Masashi Kishimoto
First movie Naruto the Movie: Ninja War in the Land of Snow
Latest movies Boruto: Naruto the movie
First TV show Naruto
First episode air date September 21, 1999
Cast Junko Takeuchi, Maile Flanagan, Noriaki Sugiyama, Yury Lowenthal, Chie Nakamura, Kazuhiko Inoue, Dave Wittenberg
Video games Naruto Ninja Council 3, Naruto: Rise Of A Ninja, Naruto: Path Of The Ninja, Naruto: Ultimate Ninja Storm, Naruto x Boruto: Ninja Voltage, Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Impact
Manga Release Date August 6, 2003
Manga comic book 72
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Source: New Republic