Serial Experiments Lain Creator Shares Big News on Long-Awaited Anime

When it comes to cult-classic anime, Serial Experiments Lain has carved out a passionate fanbase since it first debuted in the late 1990s. The surreal series helped creator Chiaki J. Konaka rise in the anime ranks, creating other stories that took the world by storm. Unfortunately, not every project can receive its own anime adaptation, regardless of how popular its creator has become. Luckily, Konaka has shared a major update regarding an anime adaptation for one of his works, and while it might not be a Serial Experiments sequel, it is an anime that many have been waiting to see for over fifteen years.

Hilariously enough, a YouTuber reached out director to Chiaki Konaka via email, wondering if one of the creator’s biggest series, Despera, would ever receive an anime adaptation of its own. In a shocking twist, Chiaki didn’t just respond to the inquiry, but the writer confirmed that a Despera anime was in the works, “The Production Committee has already been formed. However, the number of Japanese anime productions is so large right now that it is difficult to free up studios. However, the structure will be newly changed at the end of 2024, and the production is set for the year 2027. This is still a long way off, but please be patient and wait for it.”

What is Despera?

Despera is a creation of Konaka’s and while it doesn’t take place in the same universe as his previous works, it has been billed as the spiritual successor to Serial Experiments Lain. Taking place in the 1920s, the series focuses on its young protagonist Ain, living in an alternate reality where science is far greater than that time period in our world. First arriving in 2009, the light novel series has never been adapted to the screen but that doesn’t mean it wasn’t attempted.

In 2009, it was revealed that director Ryutaro Nakamura, who was responsible for Serial Experiments Lain, would be joining the series. However, Ryutaro tragically passed away from pancreatic cancer in 2013 and the project was placed on hiatus for quite some time. While Konaka has given updates on the Despera anime from time to time, many fans wondered if it would ever see the light of day. Luckily, it appears that even if the show is some time away from release, the wheels are in motion for Despera’s anime arrival.

Want to Watch Lain?

If you never had the opportunity to watch Serial Experiments Lain, it is currently available to stream on Amazon Prime Video. Here’s how the streaming service describes the surreal series, “Close the World. Open the Next. Decades before the internet was something people carried around in their pockets, these words introduced anime fans to a surreal existence where computer monitors served as portals to brave new worlds. Serial Experiments: Lain and its deceptively “ordinary” title character redefined an entire generation’s concept of the world wide web, prompting us all to suspiciously take note of humming power lines and central processing units. Follow along as fourteen year old Lain – driven by the abrupt suicide of a classmate – logs on to the Wired and promptly loses herself in a twisted mass of hallucinations, memories, and interconnected-psyches. Close the World. Open the Next. It’s as simple as the flip of a switch.”