See you, Space Cowboy… probably around 2021. According to io9, the live-action Cowboy Bebop will be released on Netflix in 2021, after several delays spurred by an on-set injury and COVID-19.
The up coming show is adapted from the landmark 1990’s anime under the same name. Set in 2071, the anime follows the adventures of Spike Spiegel, a bounty hunter aboard his ship the Bebop. Directed by Shinichirō Watanabe (Samurai Champloo), the series was lauded for its unique blend of film genres and use of stylish jazz music.
In 2018, Netflix announced its plans for live-action reboot. As reported by Variety, the cast is set to include John Cho (Harold & Kumar, Star Trek) as Spike, the charismatic witty bounty hunter, Mustafa Shakir (Luke Cage) as Jet Black, an ex-cop vagabond with a traumatic past, Daniella Pineda (Jurassic World, Inside Amy Schumer) as Faye Valentine, a bounty hunter suffering with amnesia from being cryogenic freezing, and Alex Hassell (The Boys) as Vicious, a notorious hit-man, who shares a pass with Spike. Shinichirō Watanabe is also on the team as a creative consultant.
However, the series’ production hit a snag in 2019, when it was reported that lead actor John Cho was injured on the set. The incident resulted in a delay in production, as his recover took longer than expected. Now, with the global pandemic that is COVID-19, the series will be pushed back even further until 2021.
Despite the challenges faced, Grillo-Marxuach remains confident that the show will please die-hard fans. He told io9, “Everybody has a different idea of what the best version of a show is, and a lot of Cowboy Bebop fans believe that the anime is the best version of that show. We hope that we can convert them to look at our version of it, and think that it’s a wonderful translation, a wonderful addition to the original canon. We’re deep enough in a world that where fandom is important to the existence of shows, that people like me don’t ever really lose sight of that. I think that there are always going to be tone-deaf reboots of things and all of that, but we’re fans. You know, we come at this as fans. We love genre, we love science fiction, and we love Cowboy Bebop.”