Beyond Spike, Jet, Faye, Ed and Ein, Cowboy Bebop has a large and colorful cast, and viewers should be prepared to see plenty of them in Netflix's reboot of the classic anime.The newly revealed live-action Cowboy Bebop opening credits introduced a whole host of new characters, and Netflix followed up on Twitter by identifying many of them by name and explaining their roles in the story and who will play each one. Fans of the original anime will recognize important players as well as a few quirky background characters and stars of individual episodes.
The highest-profile characters to have their casting confirmed are Vicious and Julia. Vicious, who will be played by Alex Hassell, is Spike's former friend turned vengeful rival. Although he appears sporadically throughout the series, he's ultimately considered its major villain. Julia is a mysterious woman from Spike's past, shown mostly through flashbacks, who has connections to Vicious as well. She will be played by Elena Satine.
Also announced were Mason Alexander Park, who is already known as Desire in Netflix's upcoming The Sandman, as Gren and Tamara Tunie as Ana. The character of Ana appears to be adapted from the anime's Annie, and in the new series can be found in a night club with Gren rather than alone in a convenience store.
The guest-starring actors announced include Jay Uddin and Lydia Peckham as Asimov and Katerina, a criminal couple who were the first bounty that Spike and Jet pursued in the anime. Adrienne Barbeau will be playing the eco-terrorist Maria Murdock. Rodney Cook is the voice of the Teddy Bomber, and Josh Randall is the murderously infantile Pierrot Le Fou.
On a more comedic note, the intro confirmed that the in-universe TV show Big Shot will be back, starring Ira Munn and Lucy Currey as Punch and Judy, the over-the-top cowboy characters who keep bounty hunters informed about the latest fugitives and rewards for nabbing them.
The new cast members join John Cho as Spike, Mustafa Shakir as Jet Black and Daniella Pineda as Faye Valentine, with Netflix adding a special note to give due credit to its canine actor Harry, who is playing the team's Corgi, Ein. The new series has tapped the anime's original composer, Yoko Kanno, and also brings back its director, Shinichiro Watanabe, to serve as a creative consultant.
Every bounty hunter, crime boss, and innocent bystander in the live-action Cowboy Bebop will be there when the show premieres on Nov. 19. The original anime is currently available for streaming on Hulu.
Source: Twitter