This Wild Sci-Fi Anime Is From the Guy Who Made John Wick
If you've ever wondered what John Wick would look like as an anime—good news, you're about to find out.
While the Wick anime prequel is still in the works, director Chad Stahelski has already dipped his toes into the genre with a different project: Lazarus, a high-octane sci-fi action series that's blowing up on Max right now.
Lazarus is the latest anime from Shinichiro Watanabe—yes, Cowboy Bebop, Samurai Champloo, Space Dandy Watanabe—and it's animated by Studio MAPPA, the studio behind Jujutsu Kaisen, Chainsaw Man, and the last chunk of Attack on Titan. In other words, this thing has action pedigree coming out of every frame.
The setup? In a near-future dystopia, a crew of criminals has to track down a rogue scientist who may or may not be planning to wipe out humanity. Think Ghost in the Shell meets The Raid, with a philosophical hangover. So far, 11 episodes are out, with the penultimate episode dropping June 21, and the finale airing shortly after, wrapping things up at 13 episodes total. As of this week, Lazarus is sitting at #10 on Max's most-watched list.
So where does Stahelski come in? The John Wick director designed Lazarus' fight choreography from the ground up. He didn't just storyboard some cool kicks—he actually staged the fights in real life using stunt performers, which MAPPA's animators used as reference to bring that trademark Wick brutality to animation. It's Stahelski's first big anime gig, and basically a warm-up lap for what comes next.
Because yes, there's a full-on John Wick anime prequel coming.
We don't have much yet in terms of production details—no studio, no trailer, no release date—but we do know the story will focus on the impossible task: the job that let Wick walk away from his old life before the events of the first movie. In other words, the origin story we've been waiting for.
Fans are hoping Stahelski brings MAPPA along for that ride too, given how well Lazarus turned out. But with MAPPA juggling five other shows and three mental breakdowns at any given time, that might be wishful thinking.
For now, Lazarus is the best preview you're going to get of what John Wick: The Anime might feel like—and so far, it's hitting just as hard.