Last year, when the Cowboy Bebop creator, Shinichiro Watanabe, announced his new anime project, he brought a new sense of excitement to his fans. Watanabe is a legend in the anime industry for creating extraordinary anime series like Cowboy Bebop, Samurai Champloo, Space Dandy, Carole & Tuesday, Kids on the Slope, etc.
He is particularly known for Cowboy Bebop, which was one of the first anime series that made a global impact and earned worldwide appreciation. The series paved the way for the globalization of the anime industry, especially gaining a lot of hype in the West. And now, Watanabe’s upcoming series, Lazarus, is going to follow in the footsteps of Cowboy Bebop.
Watanabe is too excited for Lazarus as he has stepped out to promote the series as much as possible. During the promotions, the Cowboy Bebop creator made an intriguing revelation about wanting to work with popular American singer and songwriter, Billie Eilish. Not only that, he even pointed out that he has been inspired by her work.
Shinichiro Watanabe Gets Back in the Game With Lazarus
Lazarus was announced during the 2024 New York Comic-Con, and it was one of the biggest revelations in the entire convention. Later on, Adult Swim released a first-look video of Lazarus on YouTube, giving more details about the upcoming Shinichiro Watanabe project. The announcement instantly grabbed a lot of attention, and fans are excited about the series.
Lazarus follows the story of Alex Gilberto, a fugitive in a highly futuristic world set in 2052. Lazarus is a science fiction adventure with a lot of drama and thrill, but the spotlight is stolen by the action within the series.
This is because John Wick’s director, Chad Stahelski, is involved with the upcoming project, making Lazarus extremely special.
Lazarus will hold a special place in the hearts of Cowboy Bebop fans because both series are similar in more than one way. Aside from sharing the same creator, the voice actors from Cowboy Bebop will also be a part of Lazarus, which follows a similar futuristic theme.
Shinichiro Watanabe Has a Special Request For Billie Eilish
During the New York Comic-Con, while Watanabe was promoting Lazarus, he was interviewed by Anime News Network, regarding his journey in the industry and his future prospects. Watanabe was asked about his current musical preference and the anime director’s answer shocked everyone.
Watanabe stated:
Unfortunately, I’ve only got time to pick one. Yesterday, I went and saw Billie Eilish in Madison Square Garden. It was very inspiring. If you can get us in contact, tell her I’m very interested in collaborating.
The Japanese creator revealed that he recently saw Billie Eilish’s concert in Madison Square Garden and was mesmerized by it. He loved it so much that he would like to collaborate with her for a future project which could be a good thing.
Not only that, he also pointed out that he was inspired by the American Singer which is a huge deal, at least for Watanabe’s fans. If he manages to convince Eilish to collaborate, it will surely be a big moment for the anime community.
