Ask John: Will There Be a Live Action Strawberry Panic?

Question:
My brother recently showed me a video he saw on YouTube and I’m not sure whether I should believe what I saw or not. Is true or not that they are making a live action version of Strawberry Panic? It would be nice since I’m a huge fan of the show.

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I’ve heard from several people that there is going to be a live action Strawberry Panic series or movie. Is there any truth to this?

Answer:
Two separate people have posed a similar question to me, so it clearly seems like this is on the mind of the American fan community. Someone with the username “RuMorHOLicGurL” published a YouTube video in May 2008 that listed an extended Japanese cast for a live action adaptation of author Sakurako Kimino’s Strawberry Panic franchise. First, I think that anything stated as fact by someone named “RuMorHOLicGurL” should be approached cautiously. There have never been any known Japanese rumors of plans for a live action Strawberry Panic, and none of the actresses cited in the YouTube video have ever been associated with Strawberry Panic by any credible news source.

Japanese produced live action adaptations of popular manga, anime, and fiction franchises are commonplace, including adaptations of yuri manga such as director Koji Kawano’s 2008 adaptation of Ebine Yamaji’s 2001 manga Love My Life. I can’t say that a live action adaptation of Strawberry Panic will never happen, but there’s no valid evidence to suggest that such a production has ever been seriously proposed in Japan.