Blade Runner is getting an animated series, with Adult Swim (the network behind Rick & Morty) playing host. The anime and manga distributors from Crunchyroll are handling the task of distributing the show worldwide.
Collider reports, citing an official press release as its source, that Blade Runner – Black Lotus will consist of 13 half-hour episodes and take place in the year 2032, featuring familiar faces from the Blade Runner universe. We’re expecting both movies and Philip K Dick’s source material (the short story Do Androids Dream Of Electric Sheep?) to provide inspiration.
Sola Digital Arts will be the animation studio leading the creative charge, building on their work on Blade Runner: Black Out 2022 (a prequel anime that came out prior to Blade Runner 2049‘s cinema release). Shinichio Watanabe, who wrote and directed Black Out, is involved here as well.
Adult Swim confirmed the news on Twitter, revealing a few extra details:
#BladeRunnerBlackLotus will feature thirteen 30-minute episodes produced by animation studio Sola Digital Arts (Ultraman). Shinji Aramaki (Appleseed) and Kenji Kamiyama (Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex) will direct all episodes of the first season.
— [adult swim] (@adultswim) November 29, 2018
If you’re not sure what to expect, here’s the Blade Runner: Black Out 2022 short, which is probably the closest estimation…
As Blade Runner – Black Lotus develops, we’ll be sure to furnish you with all the latest news.