Fox Gives Green Light To A Live-Action Cowboy Bebop Movie

Written By: Ken Hulsey

Sources: Twitch / Anime News Network / Avery Guerra

It appears that Hollywood has finally run the gambit on American cartoons and comic books to steal ideas from and has moved on to Japanese Anime. Within the last few years several Anime features have been made into live-action films in their native Japan, including Yatterman and Cutie Honey, but now it seems Hollywood will be quick to follow suite. Last year it was announced that Tobey McGuire's production team had gotten the go-ahead to make a live-action version of the popular 1980s animated series, "Robotech" (Macross to those across the Pacific) and now that film producer Erwin Stoff (The Matrix, A Scanner Darkly) is developing a live-action adaptation of Sunrise's Cowboy Bebop for 20th Century Fox.

Recently Stoff told IFMagazine.com that the project is "in the really early stages" since the parties "just signed it the other day." Shinichiro Watanabe's original anime follows the motley crew of the spaceship Bebop as it travels throughout the solar system in search of the next job. Stoff promised "a real degree of faithfulness," and added, “When I met with them in Japan, one of the first things that I brought up was the experience that we had on A Scanner Darkly, and how hard we worked to remain faithful to Philip K. Dick, and that was our big concern here.”

In 2001, Bandai Entertainment released the 1988 series, "Cowboy Bebop" in the United States and Cartoon Network aired the series as part of their "Adult Swim" block of late night programing. The series quickly became one of the networks highest rated programs and US audiences embraced the shows mix of action and humor.

More About Cowboy Bebop:

Plot: In the year 2071 AD, the crew of the spaceship Bebop travel the solar system trying to apprehend bounties. Nation-states have collapsed, and various races and peoples live throughout the solar system. In the slang of the era, "Cowboys" are bounty hunters. Most episodes revolve around a specific bounty, but the show often shares its focus with the pasts each of the four main characters and of more general past events, which are revealed and brought together as the series progresses.

The Characters:

Spike Spiegel is a former member of the Red Dragon Crime Syndicate who is haunted by the memory of his time in the organization, namely his relationship with a mysterious woman named Julia, and his former syndicate partner, Vicious.

Jet Black, a former Inter-Solar System Police (ISSP) officer and the owner of the Bebop. Once called "The Black Dog" by his fellow officers for his relentless nature, he bears a cybernetic arm as constant reminder of what happened when he rushed into trouble without looking first. Like Spike, he is haunted by the memory of a woman: Alisa, his longtime girlfriend who left him without notice.

Ein, a Welsh Corgi and former lab animal identified as a "data dog" by the scientists who created him. The reason for this title is never explained, but it is suggested that he possesses enhanced intelligence, which he displays in subtle ways throughout the series. Despite his enhanced intelligence and comprehension, the rest of the Bebop crew typically fail to notice these qualities.

Faye Valentine, an amnesiac awakened from a 54-year cryogenic slumber after being injured. She is tricked into assuming the debt of the man that woke her, and constantly attempts to gamble on quick cash as a solution to her debt. Her past and her real name are a mystery as the name "Valentine" was given to her by a doctor. Her history is unraveled progressively throughout the series.

Edward, a young, eccentric computer genius and master hacker. Though she is a girl, there is a popular confusion as to Ed's gender due to her name and androgynous appearance. She gave herself the long and fanciful name "Edward Wong Hau Pepelu Tivrusky IV" after running away to an orphanage, but after her father is found it is revealed later on that her real name is Françoise Appledelhi. She goes by the name Radical Edward when hacking, and commonly spends the most time with Ein.

See Ya On The Big Screen Space Cowboy...........