Let’s face it: Hollywood has a bad track record when it comes to anime. As seen with the colossal insult that was Dragonball Evolution, western studios have proved time and again they don’t understand the medium. Beloved classics like Ghost in the Shell have been run through Hollywood and left worse for wear. So, naturally, you can understand why fans are not jazzed about recent reports regarding a live-action Cowboy Bebop show.
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Created in 1998, Cowboy Bebop stands as one a pinnacle of anime excellence. The original series was thought up by Shinchiro Watanabe and animated by the folks at Sunrise. The anime ran for 26 episodes, but its length didn’t hinder its international popularity. Cowboy Bebop is considered to be one of the greatest anime series of all-time, and critics continue to praise its cross-genre appeal.
However, anime fans have absolutely zero faith that Hollywood can do the project justice. Reports surfaced today that Tomorrow Studios is set to adapt the classic anime. Chris Yost of Thor: The Dark World will write the show’s adaptation and Sunrise is set to executive produce the project. A slew of other producers have been brought on-board to oversee the television series such as Marty Adelstein, Matthew Weinberg, and Becky Clements. So far, there is no word on whether Watanabe will offer any assistance to the series.
Fans have not reacted well to the news as a whole, and their frustration is easy to find social media. While there are anime enthusiasts who are willing to give Cowboy Bebop a shot, many others are concerned about the story’s legacy. Audiences are afraid the Cowboy Bebop series will turn into a drawn-out fiasco like the one Dragon Ball experienced. The new adaptation’s TV format gives the creators more room to breathe with the complex story, but that fact does little quell people’s casting concerns. After all, Ghost in the Shell did get slammed over its white-washing controversy.
If you want to get a taste of how fans are reacting, then you can check out the slides below. And, if you’d like, feel free to share your thoughts about the adaptation with us online. Let us know what you think on Twitter @ComicBook or @MeganPetersCB!
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#CowboyBebop DOES NOT… I repeat… DOES NOT need a live action movie. pic.twitter.com/TxTkQvhaBw
โ VirgenFJ (@VirgenFJ) June 6, 2017
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A quick and dirty #CowboyBebop fan casting. I’m a damn Bebop purist and I’d watch the hell out of the remake with this cast: pic.twitter.com/b2xEneMNiI
โ ProMotion Side B (@salmattos) June 6, 2017
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I leave the Internet for two hours and television thinks it can do a live-action #CowboyBebop. Only if the cast is Asian, goddammit.
โ Donna Dickens (@MildlyAmused) June 6, 2017
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When you hear the words “‘Cowboy Bebop’ live-action remake”. pic.twitter.com/5YsT622l9l
โ Lunar Archivist (@LunarArchivist) June 6, 2017
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‘Cowboy Bebop US live action remake’ ‘Death Note live action US Netflix Drama-‘ pic.twitter.com/kZKzI6E4WH
โ momalish ? (@momalish) June 6, 2017
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The long line of NO in the comment section for the #CowboyBebop American TV remake is pretty amusing https://t.co/7SNnokIZqk #anime pic.twitter.com/bdOCq5poeE
โ The Nerds of Color (@TheNerdsofColor) June 6, 2017
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my fave is the “live-action bebop? but we had that, it was called firefly!!” quips, as if firefly even deserves to smell cowboy bebop’s shit
โ Mike Toole (@MichaelToole) June 6, 2017
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Live action Cowboy Bebop pic.twitter.com/gPnX11jWh3
โ Rinny (@braidcut) June 6, 2017
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Me realizing that Tomorrow Studios is about to whitewash the most iconic anime of all time. #CowboyBebop pic.twitter.com/XQWljibEgK
โ Blue Ivy’s Au Pair (@MikeyTBH) June 6, 2017
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so cowboy bebop is getting a live action remake by a studio nobody’s heard of and the guy who wrote thor 2
โ ใใ (@weeabob) June 6, 2017
