Sci-fi adventure series Cowboy Bebop has cast Elena Satine in the pivotal role of Julia. The Netflix series is a live-action remake of the 1998 Japanese animated series of the same name, which is now frequently references as one of the most seminal anime of all time.
Cowboy Bebop was a neo-noir sci-fi western – with tinges of comedy and cyberpunk – following a ragtag crew of bounty hunters running from their pasts and searching for some kind of peace in between tracking down fugitives in the crime-riddled colonies of the Solar System. It aired only a single season of 26 episodes, initially causing some controversy over its graphic violence being shown in a early evening timeslot, leading to its first run showing only half its episodes. It premiered on US TV in 2001, and is credited with introducing the medium to a whole new audience, as well as heavily influencing a number of sci-fi properties, seen most clearly in Firefly.
The news of Elena Satine’s casting as the nebulous Julia came from THR. Her character is described as a “sultry beauty with a voice to die for,” and is something of a nebulous mystery, having few direct appearances outwith flashbacks, but is the driving force behind much of series protagonist Spike’s emotional journey throughout the series, much of her character and personality revealed through his memory of her.
Satine joins an already impressive cast that includes John Cho (Star Trek) as Spike Spiegel, an organized crime hitman turned bounty hunter; Mustafa Shakir (Luke Cage) as Jet Black, a former interplanetary cop who quit over the rampant corruption in the police force; Daniella Pineda (Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom) as Faye Valentine, a sarcastic, amnesiac con artist and skilled fighter; and Alex Hassell (The Boys) as Vicious, an aptly-named enforcer for an organized crime syndicate and nemesis of Spike.
Satine is certainly no stranger to genre TV, having previously appeared in the likes of Smallville episode “Patriot” as Atlantean warrior Mera; Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. episode “Yes Men”, where she played the primary villain Lorelei, an Asgardian sorceress whose voice has the power to enslave the wills of men; and in a supporting role in the first season of The Gifted as Dreamer, a mutant with the power to rewrite people’s memories, and with it manipulate their behavior. With the character of Julia largely defined by others’ memory of her as a vision of feminine perfection and Satine’s previous roles including both a seductress and someone drastically affecting memory, she seems like a perfect fit for Cowboy Bebop’s mysterious and ethereal woman.
Source: THR