Amin Abbas

DUBAI: Netflix has recently revealed that the live-action adaptation of the ‘Cowboy Bepop’ anime has been canceled after only one season of its premiere last month on the streaming platform.

The series garnered nearly 74 million viewing hours so far, but its ratings dropped by 59% about two weeks after its premiere. It also received a 46% average rating among critics, and 54% among audience members on the Rotten Tomatoes website.

Writer and executive producer Jeff Pinkner previously said that the show’s staff was planning a second season.

The series starred John Cho as Spike, Mustafa Shakir as Jet, Daniella Pineda as Faye, Alex Hassell as Vicious, and Elena Satine as Julia. The Japanese dub included returning voice actors from the original anime’s cast.

Netflix and Tomorrow Studios co-produced the series, with Netflix handling physical production. Tomorrow Studios is a partnership between producer Marty Adelstein and ITV Studios.

Shinichiro Watanabe, the original anime’s director, served as consultant for the project. Andre Nemec, Josh Appelbaum, Jeff Pinkner, and Scott Rosenberg of Midnight Radio are credited as showrunners and executive producers. Yoko Kanno returned to score the music for the series.

The show was based on the popular 1998 Japanese anime TV series and the 2001 anime film. Netflix first ordered the project direct to series back in 2018. A live-action feature film version starring Keanu Reeves was also previously in development at Fox.