When it comes to the anime medium, there are many fans out there looking to dip their toes into the world of horror. Unfortunately, the anime industry doesn’t pump out nearly as many spooky stories as it does tales featuring world-ending battles and/or romantic slice-of-life comedies. Luckily, one franchise that blends these two styles together is Parasyte, the body-horror series that has long blended hard-hitting action with twisted takes on the human anatomy. Like many other anime franchises, Parasyte received its own live-action adaptation, as Netflix introduced viewers to Parasyte: The Grey. Thanks to the success of this series, the streaming service is returning to the well.
Videos by ComicBook.com
The upcoming spin-off series is confirmed to arrive next year and has received the title Parasyte: Tamiya. Rather than focusing on an entirely new character who is sharing their body with one of the creepy, crawly extraterrestrials, Ryoko Tamiya is a major character in the original story. For those who don’t know, Tamiya is a high school teacher who is completely consumed by her parasite, left wondering whether it’s even possible for her race and humanity to forge a shaky peace. Ryoko was a big part of the original manga, though she never had a full manga series and/or anime show of her own. With the promotional material featuring Tamiya holding a baby, the upcoming live-action series might be using stories from the source material under a new banner.
Parasyte’s Live-Action Body Horror
Parasyte has been no stranger to the world of live-action, even though its premise requires plenty of practical effects and CG animation to bring its aliens to life. In 2014, a two-film series that adapted the events of the source material hit Japan, while Netflix released a live-action spin-off series, Parasyte: The Grey, in 2024. The Grey focused on brand new characters to the franchise while still focusing on the body-bending aliens sharing physical bodies with humanity, often to the detriment of their human hosts. Luckily, the creative team that helped bring The Grey to life is returning for Tamiya.
Considering Tamiya’s role in the original storyline, it is entirely possible that many of the storybeats from the 1989 manga series will be seen via a new vantage point. In fact, Netflix’s live-action manager of creative, Yoshihiro Sato, shared more details regarding what we can expect from Parasyte: Tamiya.
“This series depicts the untold story of Ryoko Tamiya. Despite being a parasite who preyed upon and possessed the body of the human with the same name, the experience of raising a human baby and developing a bond with it inspires her to search for a way to coexist with humanity. Can one’s innate nature be reshaped by experience? Tamiya’s conflict and life journey are explored for the first time in this original story that stays true to the essence of the manga. Our purpose in making this series was to take the universal questions posed by the original manga 30 years ago and bring them into the modern spotlight. I hope everyone is excited to see yet another collaboration between Netflix and Yeon Sang-ho featuring the work of many excellent Japanese creators and actors.”
What do you think of this new Parasyte live-action series exploring one of the franchise’s biggest supporting characters? Leave a comment below and join the conversation now in the ComicBook Forum!
More Anime
-
Courtesy of Nickelodeon -
Image Courtesy of Toei Animation -
Image Courtesy of Studio Pierrot/Toei Animation -
Image Courtesy of CloverWorks -
Image Courtesy of White Fox / Crunchyroll -
Image Courtesy of OLM -
Image Courtesy of Sunrise/Studio Bones
