Netflix has found a Bebop crew it can jam with.
The Hollywood Reporter has word that Netflix confirmed the cast for its live-action adaptation of the beloved anime Cowboy Bebop and that the first two episodes will be directed by Alex Garcia Lopez. The ten-episode series is being showrun by Josh Appelbaum, André Nemec, Jeff Pinkner and Scott Rosenberg. Cowboy Bebop’s original director, Shinichiro Watanabe, is also on board to consult the adaptation.
John Cho — probably best known to io9 audiences for his role as Sulu in the rebooted Star Trek movies, as well as turns in Searching and Sleepy Hollow—will lead the ensemble as the legendarily smooth Spike Spiegel, a bounty hunter and leader of the ragtag crew aboard the spaceship Bebop as the team takes on new jobs together.
He’ll be joined by Luke Cage’s Mustafa Shakir as Jet Black, a former cop turned captain of the Bebop and an old partner of Spike, while Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom’s Daniella Pineda will play the mysterious Faye Valentine, an amnesiac con artist who joins the Bebop’s crew after initially being the target of a bounty Jet and Spike were chasing.
There’s no word on who will be playing the fourth and fifth members of the Bebop team—whizkid master hacker Ed, and the loveably adorable corgi Ein—but today’s announcement was rounded out with the casting of a major antagonist for the series: Alex Hassell as Vicious, a former bounty hunting partner of Spike’s in the Red Dragon crime syndicate, who is now out to kill him.
We’ll bring you more on Netflix’s plans for Cowboy Bebop as and when we learn them.
Comments
14 responses to “This Is Not A Drill: John Cho Will Star In Netflix’s Live-Action Cowboy Bebop”
I’m down with that. He was fantastic in season 2 of The Exorcist.
Yeah I can see it…..dude has some pretty good range and can wear a suit.
Can’t think of anything I’ve seen where he shows off some combat skills though?
Definitely treading on hallowed ground for me, but ok. This could work.
It should still be Keanu Reeves.
As much as I love the guy, I could never imagine him as Spike when I heard about the project years ago.
I always hoped that if it went ahead he would realise he made a heaps better Vincent.
(After John Wick I think he’s even more perfect for that role)
“John Cho — probably best known to io9 audiences for his role as Sulu in the rebooted Star Trek movies, as well as turns in Searching and Sleepy Hollow“.
Wait so he’s not best known for Harrold and Kumar movies? Come on?!
Sulu? Wasn’t that played by Harold?
It’s a weird choice, but it’s a weird enough choice that I’m on board to see where they’re going with it.
Ed is going to be the interesting one. A child who’s maybe autistic and definitely gender fluid is going to generate more than a few hot takes and think pieces, wherever they take her.
Ed is not gender fluid. Just extremely eccentric.
Well some of these casting choices are certainly…interesting, like why a black guy for jet. why a mexican-american for faye.
Spike is at least closer if you feel koreans and japanese people are close enough (certainly a lot closer than the other castings), though not sure looks and attitude wise about John cho, he does seem like a good actor though so that second point may be moot.
So they are aiming for a very diverse cast, ed will be aboriginal and ein will be a german shepard, because you can’t even keep the dog the same 😛
In this PC day and age, you gotta wonder whose idea it was to cast a black man as a character named “Jet Black.”
Yeah i also got a laugh out of that.
Maybe its some second level of PC where its the right thing to do, like a double negative or something
10 episodes? Bebop has more than 10 /absolutely essential/ episodes! (I’d say 12-14) This is going to please nobody, everybody will have a fave episode that will not be included. I can already tell they’re not going to do Speak Like a Child *grumble*
unless they are planning more than 1 season.