What year is beloved anime series Cowboy Bebop set in? Alongside the likes of Neon Genesis Evangelion, Cowboy Bebop is one of the defining anime shows of the 1990s. It's hard to pinpoint its exact genre, since its a fusion of noir, comedy, western, sci-fi and about half a dozen others, but the core of the series focuses on the crew of the titular Bebop ship. They're a ragtag crew of bounty hunters and are made up of Spike, Faye, Jet, Ed and a hyperintelligent dog named Ein.
Cowboy Bebop episodes could veer from melancholy romance to a parody of Alien, but it was always grounded with great characters and an incredible soundtrack. The series very much left fans wanting more too, as it only lasted 26 episodes. Director Shinichirō Watanabe returned for 2001 movie spinoff Cowboy Bebop: Knockin' On Heaven's Door, which was set before the ending of the series. Over 20 years after it finished there's still demand for more from the Bebop crew, but it appears Watanabe would prefer to leave the show in the past.
If Cowboy Bebop could be distilled to any one description that would probably be space western, and it features a universe where old-fashioned technology and morality meets spaceships and astral gates. Cowboy Bebop is set in 2071 and takes place in a future where Earth was nearly destroyed, with humanity subsequently traveling out to the stars to make a new life.
This explains Cowboy Bebop's wild fusion of genres and cultures and allowed pretty much each episode to take place in a distinct environment. A live-action Cowboy Bebop movie went into development around a decade ago, with Keanu Reeves signed to play Spike Spiegel. It seems this project ultimately hit a brick wall over budget, with the screenplay being pricier than the studio was willing to invest in.
Instead, a live-action Cowboy Bebop series will hit Netflix in 2021, with a cast consisting of John Cho as Spike, Mustafa Shakir as Jet and Daniella Pineda as Faye. The making of the series has been anything but smooth, with the production suffering numerous delays caused by Cho suffering an injury and the Coronavirus pandemic, though it's still on course for a 2021 release. Shinichirō Watanabe will reportedly act as a creative consultant on the Cowboy Bebop live-action show, but he's currently directing anime series Blade Runner: Black Lotus for Adult Swim, which is also set to land in 2021. Watanabe previously helmed animated short Blade Runner: Black Out 2022, which was a tie-in for Blade Runner 2049.