Getting a live-action Naruto movie right will be tricky considering how many times Hollywood has failed at making anime adaptations, but the first villain faced by Team 7 can give the upcoming film a very important advantage. After years of rumors and uncertainty about the Naruto live-action movie, director Destin Daniel Cretton was officially announced to be helming the project. Although no release date was given, it seems like the Naruto film is finally moving forward.
With Destin Daniel Cretton currently directing Tom Holland’s Spider-Man 4 for Sony and Marvel Studios, it remains to be seen when Naruto will enter production. While it may take a while before we start learning story details, it isn’t difficult to predict which portion of the manga the Naruto film will cover first. As the introductory arc in Naruto, the Land of Waves arc is all but certain to the central story of the first Naruto movie. Should that be the case, the Naruto live-action film’s main villain will most certainly be Zabuza Momochi.
Zabuza & Haku Are Low-Stakes Villains Compared To Naruto’s Other Antagonists
Naruto’s First Movie Can Start Small Before The Sequels Go Big
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One of the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist and a rogue ninja, Zabuza is an incredibly deadly assassin who is powerful enough to go toe-to-toe with Kakashi. Likewise, Haku was a ninja genius who carried one of the most powerful kekkei genkai in the Naruto universe. That said, compared to all the other villains that would come next, neither Zabuza nor Haku were that particularly strong. Granted, those two villains were astonishingly powerful compared to Team 7 at the time. However, as Naruto progressed, what Zabuza and Haku could do became slightly less impressive.
Naruto’s first villain is technically Mizuki, although only for the first episode.
Between their goals and their skills, Zabuza and Haku can be considered low-stakes antagonists compared to the likes of Orochimaru, Itachi, and the rest of the Akatsuki. Even the Chunnin Exams arc put Naruto in deadlier situations, particularly when Gaara’s full power was unleashed. With a relatively grounded set of techniques and a fighting style that involves mostly hand-to-hand combat, Zabuza and Haku are the right villains for the first movie in a new franchise. Naruto’s first film won’t have to deal with end-of-the-world situations or heavily depend on CGI like most superhero blockbusters.
The Land Of Waves Arc Has The Right Pacing For Naruto’s First Live-Action Movie
The Land Of Waves’ Story Would Fit A Theatrical Movie Perfectly
Not only are Zabuza and Haku the right antagonists for the first Naruto movie, but the Land of Waves arc has just the right pacing for a theatrical feature. Whereas most Naruto arcs are part of a larger story in which new pieces of the puzzle are revealed, the Land of Waves arc is fairly self-contained. The journey to protect Tazuna as he completes the bridge has a clear beginning, middle, and end, making it easy to turn it into a three-act film. The Land of Waves also has a clear message about purpose and what being a ninja means.
Naruto Part 1’s Non-Filler Arcs Anime Episodes Prologue/Land of Waves 1-19 Chunin Exams 20-67 Konoha Strike 68-80 Search for Tsunade 81-100 Sasuke Retrieval 107-135
Naruto is one of the most popular anime of all time, but that does not mean a live-action movie would be a guaranteed hit even if done well. Plenty of wannabe franchises failed by putting too much in the first film, sacrificing the flow of the story for cameos and sequel hooks. This is a mistake that the Naruto movie can avoid by focusing solely on the Land of Waves story first, leaving things like Orochimaru and the Chunnin Exams for a sequel. If the first Naruto live-action film is successful, there will be plenty of stories left for sequels.
Zabuka & Haku Are Some Of Naruto’s Greatest Villains Despite Not Being That Powerful
The Naruto Movie Must Get Zabuza And Haku’s Stories Right
Naruto’s drastic change in power scale – from hand-to-hand combat and the art of deception to literal gods and aliens – made it so that earlier villains suddenly became less impressive in hindsight. Even though Zabuza and Haku were eventually resurrected during the Fourth Great Ninja War and got to showcase their powers amidst a lot of powerful shinobi, it’s difficult to put them in the same league as all the other villains Naruto faced over the years. However, that does not change the fact that Zabuza and Haku were some of Naruto’s best-written villains.
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The Land of Waves arc introduces Zabuza as a cold, heartless assassin who is willing to do the most terrible things. Likewise, Haku presents himself as nothing but a tool to be used by Zabuza, the only person who gave him purpose. Zabuza and Haku both challenged Naruto’s innocent perception of the shinobi world, a theme that would continue to be explored in the series. This is why the stories of Zabuza and Haku are one of the things the Naruto live-action movie must get right to do the source material justice.