Netflix’s live-action adaptation of Cowboy Bebop will release on November 19th later this year. The show is an adaptation of 1998 anime that is critically acclaimed and is immensely popular amongst fans. The show will have three bounty hunters on the spaceship Bebop who are struggling to make their careers.
Netflix’s show has been met with skepticism. But since it is announced that the original anime director Shinichirō Watanabe and composer Yoko Kanno will join the production as consultants, fans have been relieved.
The anime has been popular for the different issues it has highlighted along with an exceptional soundtrack. However, the lead of Netflix’s live-action adaptation John Cho didn’t know that the anime had such impact during its time. In a recent interview with The Vulture, the actor said that he wasn’t aware of the popularity of the anime. He watched the anime after he was approached to portray the character of Spiegel. Initially, he said yes to working on the show due to the exciting script of the first episode. He called anime a unique piece of entertainment.
Here’s what he had to say:
“I didn’t know it. The first thing I read and fell in love with was our episode-one script, which I thought was really brilliant, and I thought, what the hell is this? And then I investigated the anime and just thought this was the most unique piece of entertainment I had seen in a long time: the combination of genres, characters, the music. I called Aneesh Chagatny, who directed Searching to talk about it. ‘Are you aware of a show called Cowboy Bebop? I’ve got this offer to do an adaptation of this anime.’ I remember him telling me: ‘You have to do it.’ I didn’t realize what a big deal it was.”
With John Cho, Mustafa Shakir, and Daniel Pineda in lead along with original anime director and composer, Netflix’s live-action adaptation of Cowboy Bebop seems to be in good hands.
