Netflix has released an official teaser for its long-awaited Terminator anime series.
Terminator: The Anime Series (a tentative title that is subject to change) hails from writer/showrunner Mattson Tomlin (The Batman Part II), director Masashi Kudo (Bleach), and animation studio Production IG (Ghost in the Shell). Executive produced by Skydance, the eight-episode series centers on the war between humanity and the sentient Artificial Intelligence known as Skynet. The new teaser does not feature any actual footage from the anime. Rather, it simply hints at what’s to come — stating that, “There is no fate” and “Two days from now … everything changes.”
Check out the teaser trailer for Terminator: The Anime Series below:
The full synopsis for Terminator: The Anime Series reads as follows: “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.”
What to expect from Terminator: The Anime Series
“Anyone who knows my writing knows I believe in taking big swings and going for the heart,” Tomlin said when Netflix first announced Terminator: The Anime Series in 2021. “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.”
“Terminator is one of the most iconic sci-fi stories ever created — and has only grown more relevant to our world over time,” Netflix Vice President of Animation Series John Derderian added. “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.”
Production IG President and CEO Mitsuhisa Ishikawa shared a humorous anecdote regarding how the studio got involved in the project. “I asked my long-time friend and colleague Mamoru Oshii what he thought about the idea of turning the Terminator into an animated series,” he said. “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!”
Terminator: The Anime Series does not have a premiere date.
