A live-action Death Note movie has been in development at Warner Bros. since 2009 and at one time, had Shane Black attached to write and direct the project. However, the latest from The Tracking Board has director Gus Van Sant jumping on board to take the reins. Most of the Western audience probably knows the property best as an anime that ran on Cartoon Network's Toonami and Adult Swim programming block from 2007 - 2010. There have been three live-action Death Note films produced from Japanese film studio Nippon
Television - Death Note (June 2006), Death Note: The Last Name (November 2006) and the spinoff film, L: Change the World (February 2008).
As recent as April 2013, Shane Black confirmed that he was still attached to helm the project, however, it was also revealed around the same time that there were creative differences between he and WB regarding Light's mission and the use of shinigami. Producing the feature are Dan Lin, Doug Davison, Roy Lee, and Brian Witten through their respective production houses, Vertigo Entertainment, Witten Pictures, and Lin Pictures. The latest draft of the script was completed by Black, Anthony Bagarozzi, and Charles Mondry. Gus Van Sant is best known for Good Will Hunting and Milk.
