Viz Media Partners With United Talent Agency for Live-Action Content

Viz Media announced on Wednesday that it has partnered with talent and literary agency United Talent Agency (UTA) to develop live-action content based on Viz Media's library of anime and manga licenses.

"The UTA partnership represents an important new direction for Viz Media and our colleagues in Japan," said Viz Media's Chief Marketing Officer Brad Woods. "Bringing the rich stories of manga and anime to life in new ways is an exciting opportunity with tremendous potential. UTA is an innovator that shares our vision, and their proven track record and strong relationships throughout the domestic and international entertainment sectors will be important factors as we move forward."

Viz Media launched the Hollywood-based subsidiary Viz Productions in 2008 in order to produce and license live-action films and television shows based on anime and manga.

Viz Productions announced a feature film based on Sayuri Ueda's short story "The Street of Fruiting Bodies" last February. Viz Productions' Jason Hoffs is a producer on Warner Brothers' upcoming live-action Death Note film.​