Science SARU Teases New ‘Ghost in the Shell’ Anime for 2026

Since uploading to pop culture consciousness in the 1989 manga  by Masamune Shirow, The Ghost in the Shell has inspired audiences and storytellers as an icon of cyberpunk fiction, generating the acclaimed 1995 animated movie by Mamoru Oshii as well as a live-action Hollywood film starring Scarlett Johansson.

Now, Japanese studio Science SARU (Inu-Oh, Keep Your Hands Off Eizouken!) has unveiled the key staff, teaser trailer and key visual for a new anime series adaptation, also titled The Ghost in the Shell. Originally announced in May 2024, the project is set to hit screens in 2026.

The news series marks  the directorial debut of Mokochan (Toma Kimura), known for his work on Dan Da Dan and Scott Pilgrim Takes Off. The script was written by sci-fi author EnJoe Toh (Self-Reference ENGINE, Shadow.net). Character design ＆ executive animation directing are handled by Shuhei Handa (Scott Pilgrim Takes Off, Spriggan).

Kimura / Mokochan was born in 1992 and joined Science SARU in 2015, and studied under director Masaaki Yuasa as an assistant director along with Fuga Yamashiro. He worked as storyboarder and episode director on The Heike Story (2022), The Tatami Time Machine Blues (2022) and  Scott Pilgrim Takes Off (2023); he also storyboarded and directed the opening of SPTO. On Dan Da Dan (S1), he served as assistant director, in addition to storyboarding and directing both an episode and the ending animation.

Born in Sapporo in 1972, Toh made his debut as a writer with 2007’s Self-Reference ENGINE, which went on to win a special citation at the Phillip K. Dick Awards. His writings have won many awards: Harlequin’s Butterfly won the Akutagawa Prize, The Empire of Corpses (co-written with Project Itoh) won the Nihon SF Taisho Special Award, Mojika won the Kawabata Yasunari Prize for Literature and Nihon SF Taisho Prize, and Code Buddha won the Yomiuri Prize for Literature. He handled scripts and SF advising on the animated series Godzilla Singular Point, and he also works as a translator. Some of his translations include Charles Yu’s How to Live Safely in a Science Fictional Universe, Lafcadio Hearn’s Kwaidan (into Japanese) and Ugetsu Monogatari (into modern Japanese).

Handa was born in Fujinomiya, Shizuoka in 1984. Originally an employee at Gainax, he is currently a freelance animator at TRIGGER. After participating in Little Witch Academia (2013, Anime Mirai version), KILL la KILL (2013-2014), One Punch Man (2015), and Space Patrol Luluco (2016), he served as character designer and chief animation director on Little Witch Academia (2017, TV series). He later served as character designer on SPRIGGAN (2022) and Scott Pilgrim Takes Off (2023).

The new teaser video showcases key animation and storyboards, offering a glimpse into the series’ unfolding drama. Also, the second teaser visual, illustrated by Shuhei Handa, features cyborg protagonist Motoko Kusanagi and the AI tank Fuchikoma, and evokes the spirit of Shirow’s original manga cover sketch.

“Anime adaptation-wise, this new The Ghost in the Shell marks the fourth version following those by Oshii, Kamiyama and Kise,” said manga creator Masamune Shirow. “Alternatively, if we separate Ghost in the Shell and Innocence, categorize the S.A.C. series into Seasons 1, 2 and Solid State Society, divide Arise into its own series along with The New Movie, and split SAC_2045 into Seasons 1 and 2, this would be the tenth adaptation overall.

“Considering the shift in production staff, one could even consider this the first installment of a second generation. The original manga is quite old, so I ask for your understanding on that point (sorry!). That said, I sincerely hope this will once again be an enjoyable visual experience in some form.”

Shirow began his career in manga and illustration in 1982. He is the original creator of Appleseed (1984, Seishinsha), Dominion (1984, Hakusensha/Seishinsha), The Ghost in the Shell (1989, Kodansha) and Orion (1990, Seishinsha). He provided the original concept for Pandora in the Crimson Shell: Ghost Urn (2012, Kadokawa Shoten) and served as scriptwriter and storyboarder for the anime Black Magic M-66. His art books include the INTRON DEPOT series (1992, Seishinsha), W・TAILS CAT (2012, GOT), and GREASEBERRIES (2014, GOT). He has also worked as an illustrator for novels such as Classical Fantasy Within (written by Soji Shimada, 2008, Kodansha) and The Third [Complete Edition] (2015, Mainichi Shimbun Publishing) in addition to doing design and illustration work on games, and design and plot development work on animations.