Netflix's Cowboy Bebop Series Stops Production After John Cho's On-Set Injury

Cowboy Bebop's live-action reboot has been at the center of conversation for quite a while as the Netflix produced series has been coming together over the last few months. But things took a major step forward when Netflix officially announced that production on the new series had officially begun in New Zealand, even revealing the live-action Ein in the process. But things have take a more unfortunate turn as Deadline reports that production on the new series will now be going on a "lengthy hiatus" following an on-set accident resulting in a knee injury for star John Cho.

As Deadline reports, "Sources describe the injury as a freak accident that happened on the last take of a routine and well-rehearsed scene. It requires surgery, for which Cho has been flown back to Los Angeles, and an extensive rehabilitation. The production shutdown is expected to last between 7 and 9 months. The new filming schedule will be set once Cho's prognosis is clear."

As Deadline notes, the 7-9 months is a guess as to how long Cho's injury will take to fully heal, but until he's completely good to go it seems that production for the series has been completely halted. Cho will star in the new Cowboy Bebop series as the lead character, Spike Spiegel, so without him there's most likely not a lot that can be done.

But with production of the series just beginning, there was a thought that Cho could potentially be replaced, but a Netflix representative confirmed to Deadline that the company is in complete support of Cho and behind his recovery, "Our thoughts are with John and he has our complete support as he recuperates from this injury."

The Cowboy Bebop live-action series will be a co-production between Netflix and Tomorrow Studios. The series has been confirmed to run for 10 episodes, and Alex Garcia Lopez (Marvel's Daredevil) will direct the first two episodes. Christopher Yost (Thor: Ragnarok) has been confirmed to write the first episode. The currently confirmed cast for the new series includes the John Cho as Spike Spiegel, Mustafa Shakir as Jet Black, Daniella Pineda as Faye Valentine, and Alex Hassell as Vicious.

With live-action anime adaptations being better received in recent years, fans are looking forward to the eventual debut of the Cowboy Bebop series. This might seem like a bad omen, but it's also just terribly unlucky that Cho got an injury for such a "routine" scene. ComicBook.com will provide you with any further production updates.

via Deadline