Shinichiro Watanabe’s LAZARUS TV Anime Premieres in April
Humberto SaabedraThe production committee behind the forthcoming LAZARUS TV anime project has released its first key visual ahead of the series premiere now set for April in Japan, with 13 episodes scheduled. The series is a co-production between Shinichiro Watanabe and Warner Bros. Discovery’s Adult Swim brand and is set to air on the Toonami block sometime this year.
The Japanese cast features the following fan favorite voice actors:
- Mamoru Miyano as Axel
- Makoto Furukawa as Doug
- Maaya Uchida as Chris
- Yuma Uchida as Leland
- Manaka Iwami as Eleina
- Megumi Hayashibara as Hersch
- Akio Otsuka as Abel
- Koichi Yamadera as Dr. Skinner
Musicians Kamasi Washington, Floating Points, and Bonobo are composing the jazz and electronic fusion musical score. Sola Entertainment is co-producing the series with Jason DeMarco of Adult Swim. MAPPA is handling the animation production.
Adult Swim describes the series:
The year is 2052 – an era of unprecedented peace and prosperity prevails across the globe. The reason for this: mankind has been freed from sickness and pain. Nobel Prize-winning neuroscientist Dr. Skinner has developed a miracle cure-all drug with no apparent drawbacks called Hapuna. Hapuna soon becomes ubiquitous… and essential. However, soon after Hapuna is officially introduced, Dr. Skinner vanishes.
Three years later, the world has moved on. But Dr. Skinner has returned – this time, as a harbinger of doom. Skinner announces that Hapuna has a short half-life. Everyone who has taken it will die approximately three years later. Death is coming for this sinful world – and coming soon.
As a response to this threat, a special task force of 5 agents is gathered from across the world to save humanity from Skinner’s plan. This group is called “Lazarus.” Can they find Skinner and develop a vaccine before time runs out?
The series was first announced by Adult Swim in July 2023, and will be directed by Shinichiro Watanabe, most notable for directing the Cowboy Bebop anime television series. Chad Stahelski of the John Wick film franchise is involved in designing the action scenes.
