‘Blade Runner’ Anime Series Coming to Adult Swim

The Blade Runner universe is expanding again with an anime series that will air on Adult Swim in the U.S.

The cable channel has partnered with Alcon Television Group and anime streaming outlet Crunchyroll to produce Blade Runner — Black Lotus, a 13-episode series inspired by 2017’s Blade Runner 2049, the sequel to Ridley Scott’s 1982 classic.

The series’ green light follows Alcon’s deal with Titan Comics to continue the franchise in a series of comic books, with 2049 screenwriter Michael Green and Mike Johnson set to pen.

Details of the plot are being kept quiet for now, but Black Lotus will be set in the year 2032, in between the two films, and include some familiar characters from the Blade Runner universe.

“I first saw Blade Runner in 1982, at age 11. It has remained one of the defining films of my life,” said Jason DeMarco, senior vp/creative director of Adult Swim on-air. “To be able to explore more of this universe, with the incredible talent we have on board, is a dream come true.”

Animation studio Sola Digital Arts will produce the series, with Shinji Aramaki and Kenji Kamiyama (the upcoming Ghost in the Shell reboot) directing all episodes. Shinichiro Watanabe (Cowboy Bebop, Samurai Champloo) is a creative producer.

Adult Swim will have worldwide distribution rights (excluding Asia) to the English-dubbed version of the series and will air it in the U.S. as part of its Toonami anime block. Crunchyroll — which, like Adult Swim, is part of WarnerMedia — will handle worldwide streaming. 

Alcon’s Andrew Kosove, Broderick Johnson, Laura Lancaster and Al-Francis Cuenca and Sola Digital Arts’ Joseph Chou are executive producers. An air date for Blade Runner — Black Lotus hasn’t been set.

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