TV
“Terminator: The Anime Series” Teaser Trailer – Netflix Brings the Franchise Back Online!
Originally announced back in 2021, the all-new “Terminator: The Anime Series” is coming soon to Netflix, and a first-look teaser was debuted out of “Geeked Week” this afternoon.
Check it out below and read on for everything you need to know.
The anime hails from Japanese animation studio Production IG (Ghost in the Shell). The eight-episode series is part of the Terminator universe but will center around new characters.
Here’s the official synopsis…
“2022: A future war has raged for decades between the few human survivors and an endless army of machines. 1997: The AI known as Skynet gained self-awareness and began its war against humanity. Caught between the future and this past is a soldier sent back in time to change the fate of humanity. She arrives in 1997 to protect a scientist named Malcolm Lee who works to launch a new AI system designed to compete with Skynet’s impending attack on humanity. As Malcolm navigates the moral complexities of his creation, he is hunted by an unrelenting assassin from the future which forever alters the fate of his three children.”
“Terminator: The Anime Series” comes from Showrunner/Executive Producer/Writer Mattson Tomlin (Project Power, The Batman II), Executive Producers Skydance (David Ellison, Dana Goldberg & Don Granger), and Director Masashi Kudo.
Mattson Tomlin said in a statement back in 2021, “Anyone who knows my writing knows I believe in taking big swings and going for the heart. I’m honored that Netflix and Skydance have given me the opportunity to approach Terminator in a way that breaks conventions, subverts expectations and has real guts.”
John Derderian, Netflix, Vice President of Animation Series, added, “Terminator is one of the most iconic sci-fi stories ever created–and has only grown more relevant to our world over time. The new animated series will explore this universe in a way that has never been done before. We can’t wait for fans to experience this amazing new chapter in the epic battle between machines and humans.”
Mitsuhisa Ishikawa, President and CEO of Production I.G. chimed in, “I asked my long-time friend and colleague Mamoru Oshii what he thought about the idea of turning the Terminator into an animated series. His response was “Ishikawa, are you out of your mind?” At that instant, I was confident we should get onboard. As huge fans, our team at Production I.G is putting their heart and souls into creating this series. We hope fans will enjoy it!”
Launched in 1984 with James Cameron’s original action-slasher, the Terminator franchise to date includes six films and a short-lived spinoff television series. The franchise did head into the world of animation with Terminator Salvation: The Machinima Series back in 2009, a web-series. That series took place between the events of Rise of the Machines and Salvation.
AMC’s horror series “The Terror” wrapped its third season last month, but plans are already in motion for season four.
Executive producer David W. Zucker has confirmed that “The Terror” Season 4 is moving forward in a new chat with ScreenRant, revealing that they’ve “just closed the deal on the book we’re gonna develop next” for the series.
Which novel they’re adapting remains shrouded in secrecy at this stage, however.
That might not seem like much to go on at this stage, but the second season was an original story. Furthermore, there was a lengthy gap between seasons two and three, causing many to speculate that the third season would be the anthology series’ last. Unlike its first two, Season 3 shifted from airing on AMC to a dual Shudder and AMC+ weekly release plan, with neither streamer revealing viewership numbers.
So not only is this confirmation that the series is moving forward, but it won’t be another six years before we see Season 4.
The first season of the supernatural drama, based on Dan Simmons’ novel and aired in 2018, was set on the frigid decks of a Victorian Era sailing ship following a doomed course, while season two, “The Terror: Infamy,” which premiered in August 2019, centered on a malevolent, shape-shifting force that is locked up with prisoners in a Japanese internment camp.
Season 3, “The Terror: Devil in Silver,” tells the story of Pepper – a working class moving man, who through a combination of bad luck and a bad temper, finds himself wrongfully committed to New Hyde Psychiatric Hospital – an institution filled with the people society would rather forget. There, he must contend with patients who work against him, doctors who harbor grim secrets, and perhaps even the very Devil himself.
Dan Stevens (The Guest, Abigail) stars alongside Judith Light, CCH Pounder, Aasif Mandvi, John Benjamin Hickey, Stephen Root, Michael Aronov, Marin Ireland, Chinaza Uche, Hampton Fluker, Hayward Leach, and Philip Ettinger.
The six-episode new season is based on Victor LaValle’s novel, The Devil in Silver.