Producer/star Masi Oka offers an update on development of Death Note 2 and promises fan criticism of the first film is being taken into account. Based on Tsugumi Ohba and Takeshi Obata's manga of the same name, the first Death Note revolved around American high schooler Light Turner discovering the titular supernatural book and learning from its owner, death god Ryuk, that it can kill anyone whose name is written in its pages. Nat Wolff led the cast as Light alongside Lakeith Stanfield as L, Margaret Qualley, Shea Whigham, Paul Nakauchi, Jason Liles and Willem Dafoe as Ryuk.
Finally arriving on Netflix in 2017 after nearly a decade of development, Death Note saw generally mixed-to-negative reviews from critics and a large backlash from fans of the source material for its deviations from the manga and whitewashing of its originally Asian characters and setting. Despite this, Ohba and Obata have praised the film and it would see a sizable audience on Netflix, sparking the streaming platform's interest in a sequel. Though still not officially greenlit, Netflix began development on Death Note 2 in 2018 with Mortal Kombat scribe Greg Russo attached to pen the script, but the film has yet to properly get underway.
Oka recently spoke about Death Note 2 in an exclusive interview with Screen Rant for his work in Disney+'s Star Wars: Visions. Though unable to offer any proper update on timing for the film, the producer/star did confirm it's still being developed and stated they are taking the reception of the first film into account. See what Oka said below:
“All I can say is still in the works. Nothing has been decided either way. I can say that we are listening to the fans and hopefully the fans will be happy with the direction we’re going.”
Just over four years since its release and it's no secret that the first Death Note was largely panned by fans of the manga for its changes to the source material and changed setting. The decision to move forward with a sequel was largely met with disinterest from audiences due to said issues, though those who took to liking the film have remained open to the ways it could course correct and Oka's comments sound promising. Where some filmmakers elect to forge on ahead with their sequel plans regardless of critics or negative fan reception, the elongated time spent developing Death Note 2 does point towards the creative team behind the project taking all the time needed to find the best path forward for the story and fans.
Russo himself has previously teased that Death Note 2 will draw far more from the source manga than its predecessor did, something which Oka's update seemingly echo. The deviations from its source story was the biggest point of criticism amongst fans for the first film, given it not only put its characters on far different paths but also depicted them in ways not as interesting as the manga and anime adaptations have. With Netflix also taking larger steps to ensure its Cowboy Bebop live-action adaptation remains faithful to the anime and still deliver plenty of surprises, one can hope they keep the trend rolling for when Death Note 2 gets the official greenlight.