Netflix is breathing new life into Bryan Lee O'Malley's hugely popular graphic novel series Scott Pilgrim with an anime adaptation.
Per The Hollywood Reporter, the Scott Pilgrim anime series will be co-produced by Netflix and UCP, a division of Universal Studio Group that also helped bring The Umbrella Academy to the small screen. O'Malley will co-write and executive produce the show with BenDavid Grabinski, who served as showrunner for Nickelodeon's Are You Afraid of the Dark revival. The project doesn't yet have a full series order, but should it move forward, O'Malley and Grabinski will showrun as well.
Anime studio Science Saru, known for its hybrid hand-drawn and digital animation style, is also attached. The studio made its debut with an episode of Adventure Time in 2014 and would eventually work on highly regarded productions like The Night Is Short, Walk On Girl, Keep Your Hands Off Eizouken! and the Star Wars anime anthology series Star Wars: Visions.
Scott Pilgrim is perhaps best known for its feature film adaptation released in 2010 from director Edgar Wright. Michael Cera plays Scott alongside a surprisingly star-studded supporting cast, including Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Kieran Culkin, Aubrey Plaza, Chris Evans, Brie Larson, Brandon Routh and Anna Kendrick. While Scott Pilgrim vs. the World underperformed upon its initial theatrical release, the film went on to reach cult classic status and maintains a substantial fanbase to this day. The cast reunited in 2020 for a virtual table read celebrating the film's 10th anniversary.
Notably, Wright and his producing partner Nira Park will also receive executive producer credits for the anime adaptation. THR reports "the bandmembers from the 2010 movie are also on hand" for the series, suggesting the actors who played Scott's bandmembers in Sex-Bob-Omb -- Alison Pill and Mark Webber -- may return to voice their animated counterparts. However, this could also point to singer-songwriter Beck, who wrote the fictional band's songs, coming back to the franchise to provide even more original music.
Scott Pilgrim was originally published between 2004 and 2010 as a series of six black-and-white volumes. The video game-inspired romp follows the titular protagonist, an underachieving bass player who meets the woman of his dreams, Ramona, but must defeat her Seven Evil Exes in mortal combat in order to date her. While the overall tone is largely lighthearted, the series was praised for its exploration of relatable themes like moral conflict and emotional honesty.
Scott Pilgrim vs. the World is currently available to stream on Peacock. An Ultra HD Blu-ray version was released in 2021.
Source: THR