Animation has never been regarded as Netflix’s strongest suit in terms of both quality and viewership – although the likes of The Sea Beast, Nimona, and The Monkey King have proven to be welcome exceptions to the rule – but Blue Eye Samurai sounds as though it has plenty of potential based on nothing but its premise and the top-tier roster of talent assembled on either side of the camera.
Co-created by Amber Noizumi and Michael Green – the Academy Award-nominated Logan writer who also penned modern sci-fi classic Blade Runner 2049 – the series will be directed by Jane Wu, an art department and storyboarding veteran who boasts Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, Guardians of the Galaxy, and Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse among previous credits.
Described as “a larger-than-life action-adventure that takes place 400 years ago,” Blue Eye Samurai boasts a stacked voice cast that includes Maya Erskine, George Takei, Masi Oka, Randall Park, and Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa, with What’s on Netflix revealing that Academy Award winner Kenneth Branagh is part of the ensemble, too.
Not only that, but it was confirmed this weekend on Instagram by visual development artist Damon Bard that the end product will premiere on Nov. 3. Three months might seem like a lifetime away in the world of streaming, but when you consider Blue Eye Samurai was initially announced all the way back in October of 2020, having some light finally appear at the end of the tunnel and revealing an official debut has been a long time coming.