Movies

'Cowboy Bebop': Netflix's Live-Action Series Reveals Fall Premiere, Original Anime Composer, John Cho's Hair

cowboy bebop release
By Hoai-Tran Bui/

News of the Cowboy Bebop remake was first met with anger. How dare Netflix try to turn such a classic anime into what will inevitably be a failed live-action adaptation?! But then John Cho was cast in the lead role of the ultra-cool Spike Spiegel, and that anger turned to trepidation. Then slowly a cautious excitement, as we learned that original creator, and a very good dog, were confirmed to be on board. And it looks like Netflix is doing its darndest to win us skeptics over, with the news that original anime composer Yoko Kanno will be scoring the new (jazzy) soundtrack for the live-action series, which will debut on Netflix this fall.

Cowboy Bebop Release Confirmed

During Netflix's second day of Geeked Week, the streamer confirmed a few key things about its upcoming Cowboy Bebop remake: that Yoko Kanno will be back to score the live-action series soundtrack, that the series is set to debut on Netflix this fall, and that John Cho's hair looks very, very good.

Look at that hair! Bask in it, and how much it makes Cho look like the Spike Spiegel of our dreams! He's not even in costume, and yet he's radiating the kind of effortless cool that the character was known for. But the jazzy music that Cho and co-stars Daniella Pineda and Mustafa Shakir are jamming along to in the short video help, though it won't be nearly as good as whatever Kanno will cook up for us in the live-action series.

Space Jazz, Baby

Kanno is responsible for the beloved opening theme of the original Cowboy Bebop anime, which ran from 1998 to 2000 and is considered one of the best animes — with the best sountrack — of all time. She's also earned acclaim for her work in classic animes like Wolf's Rain and Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex.

Though the production of Cowboy Bebop was plagued by delays due to first to star John Cho's knee injury, then the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, the series managed to resume filming after the long hiatus in September last year. And now we've got a general time range for when we can expect to see the finished product, of which there will be 10 episodes — though a second season may be well on its way.

The live-action Cowboy Bebop series is created by André Nemec and Jeff Pinkner, who have previously worked together on several shows including Alias. It will be directed by Alex Garcia Lopez (Daredevil, The Punisher, and The Witcher) and Michael Katleman (Primeval and The Last Ship).

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