Netflix’s One Piece Studio Reveals Next Live-Action Anime (& It’s From Cowboy Bebop Creator)

The studio behind live-action anime efforts like One Piece and Cowboy Bebop has announced their next major live-action project, and its another franchise from Cowboy Bebop creator Shinichiro Watanabe. The live-action One Piece series is currently taking over Netflix with the debut of its second season, and it’s being hailed as one of the most successful live-action manga and anime adaptations to date. But that’s not the same case for Tomorrow Studios’ other notable live-action adaptation, Cowboy Bebop. So that makes their next project all the more interesting as to how they move forward next.

Variety reports that Tomorrow Studios is now developing a live-action adaptation for the cult classic anime series, Samurai Champloo. The original anime was also developed by Shinichiro Watanabe, and the creator will be involved in the new project as an executive producer as Tomorrow Studios hopes to avoid the same issues they ran into with Cowboy Bebop (which Watanabe had publicly denounced shortly after its debut with Netflix). The new live-action project is currently in its earliest planning stages.

Live-Action Samurai Champloo Announced By One Piece & Cowboy Bebop Studio

Tomorrow Studios producers Marty Adelstein and Becky Clements are behind the new live-action Samurai Champloo, and noted how important it was for Watanabe to be involved in the new project, “We had dinner with [Watanabe] in Japan and said, if we move forward on doing ‘Samurai Champloo,’ we really want you to be a part of the creative,” Clements stated. “We were thrilled that he was willing to do that.” Though a network or platform is not yet attached to the project, Clements revealed there’s a lot of interest in the project.

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But while Tomorrow Studios is having a ton of success with One Piece, its live-action adaptation of Watanabe’s Cowboy Bebop was much less of a hit with fans. Cancelled after only a single season, the studio has brought on Watanabe for Samurai Champloo after learning from their previous mistakes, “We’ve learned,” noted Adelstein. “Having the creator there to bless the creative is really important.” But there are some elements that the classic anime has that might be tough to translate to live-action.

Can Samurai Champloo Work In Live Action?

Tomorrow Studios promises that the live-action Samurai Champloo will retain the elements that fans loved from the original, but will also be “updating the material for a contemporary television audience.” Becky Clements also noted how music will be central to the new adaptation much like it is in the original anime, and they are planning to bring in a “major recording artist” early on in the production to help develop how it’s all going to sound.

Much like Cowboy Bebop, Samurai Champloo has a distinct vibe that really only works for itself. It’s a hit with fans because it was so unique, and we’ve unfortunately already seen what it looks like when a unique Shinichiro Watanabe anime gets adapted into live-action. But now that the creator is involved with the adaptation and likely going to influence it as much as fans have seen with how hands-on Eiichiro Oda is with One Piece, Samurai Champloo has a better chance at success.

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HT – Variety