Into the Spider-Verse Director, Afro Samurai Studio Announce Major Anime Deal

Another day, another anime. It seems new projects are always in the works when it comes to anime, and now the studio N Lite has announced big plans for its next outings. The American studio has drafted Peter Ramsey, the director of Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, to oversee two anime titles with a familiar team. Ramsey and N Lite will produce the titles with Gonzo, a popular studio from Japan that oversaw Afro Samurai.

The report comes from Variety as the trade learned Ramsey is working on two anime projects with Gonzo. The first project is a movie titled Ripper, and the second is an anime series named Hotaru. The former project is described as a noir thriller while the other is said to be a sci-fi adventure.

Into the Spider-Verse’s Director Is Working on Two Anime Titles

As for Ripper, the movie has brought in Ramsey to co-write the screenplay and executive produce. The movie will be a hybrid mixing live-action with anime, and it is currently in production. Ripper will tell the story of two detectives who are hunting a serial killer after losing a loved ones to their hunt.

For Hotaru, the anime series will tap into magic and science. N Lite describes the anime as ” a “swashbuckling sci-fi/fantasy adventure series about two star-crossed magic-wielding warriors bound by love and grief.” Samantha Inoue Harte of N Lite is credited as the project’s creator with Paul Alvarado-Dykstra and Rafael Antonio Ruiz. The trio also brought together Ripper, so N Lite has assembled a crack team for this anime deal. And according to Ramsey, he is eager to bring his vision into the ecosystem with Gonzo’s team.

“I’m excited to collaborate with N Lite on a project that is deeply personal. The shared experiences of Black and Japanese people in Japan during WWII is a historical and cultural intersection that we’ve not yet seen on screen. It’s also an incredible time for anime as a whole, and as a true lover of the medium, I’m eager to create something that has never been done before,” the director shared.

Studio Gonzo Is Ready to Return to Anime

This new anime partnership is just one of several circling the entertainment industry. Gonzo was a natural choice to N Lite to approach, and that is because the studio has a rich history of global collaborations. From Afro Samurai to Linkin Park’s “Breaking the Habit”, the studio knows how to craft global titles. And as the studio looks to its newest deal, CEO Shinichiro Ishikawa is eager to see how the partnership shakes out.

“All of us at Gonzo are proud to partner with N Lite and Peter Ramsey on these bold new original projects. They were conceived as inclusive international co-productions for diverse global audiences, and N Lite is the perfect match given our shared vision and values. We are honored to attract such esteemed creative collaborators who share our commitment to innovative storytelling,” the executive shared.

As for Studio Gonzo, the company was founded by former members of Gainax, the studio behind Neon Genesis Evangelion. However, the company would evolve into the studio we know today by February 2000. Its first projects were based on video games, but as Gonzo got into the industry, it began looking for other stories to adapt. Afro Samurai was one such project as Gonzo adapted the 2007 anime from a manga by Takashi Okazaki. From Romeo x Juliet to Hellsing and Full Metal Panic, Gonzo has overseen a number of impeccable anime over the years. Its last major release went out in 2019 with Phantasy Star Online 2: Episode Oracle. So with this new deal in mind, Gonzo is ready to reenter the anime scene with help from N Lite and the team.

What do you make of this latest anime deal? Give me a shout at @meganwpeters with your take! You can also let us know what you think over on X (Twitter) and Instagram.