Could new ‘Blade Runner 2049’ anime prequel series ‘Black Lotus’ follow the rise of Niander Wallace?
On Wednesday, Netflix announced a live-action Cowboy Bebop series, with anime creator Shinichiro Watanabe consulting on the project. On Thursday, we learned the pipeline works both ways: Watanabe will serve as creative producer on an anime prequel to Blade Runner 2049.
Blade Runner – Black Lotus will premiere thirteen 30-minute episodes. Netflix has revealed nothing about the plot of Black Lotus, except the year it’s set: 2032. This puts it squarely in the middle of Blade Runner 2049 and the original film, set in 2019. This could indicate how Black Lotus will tie into historical events described in 2049, particularly the dark days that followed the 2022 electromagnetic pulse (EMP) attack that deleted the register of Replicants and crashed the global economy.
