Is 'Cowboy Bebop' The Next Cult Hit For Netflix?

Streaming giant Netflix Inc NFLX has had many successful movies and series that generate buzz and bring new subscribers to the platform. The company’s release of “Squid Game” has broke viewership records on the platform.

The company has a revived series coming later this year that could bring in a cult following.

What Happened: Released in 1998, “Cowboy Bebop” is a well-known anime series following bounty hunters.

Netflix has transformed the title into a live action series that will be released on the platform Nov. 19.

“Based on the worldwide phenomenon from Sunrise Inc., 'Cowboy Bebop' is the jazz-inspired, genre-bending story of Spike Spiegel, Jet Black, Faye Valentine and Radical Ed: a ragtag crew of bounty hunters on the run from their pasts as they hunt down the solar system’s most dangerous criminals,” Netflix said of the new series.

Netflix committed to 10 episodes for the first season of the live action “Cowboy Bebop” series. Shinichiro Watanabe, who was the director of the original anime series, is serving as a consultant on the reboot. 

To coincide with the new “Cowboy Bebop” series, Netflix acquired the rights to the original series.

Related Link: Netflix Has Another Potentail Winner In K-Drama 'My Name' After Roaring Success of 'Squid Game' 

Why It’s Important: The series gained a wide following worldwide and in the U.S. saw a successful run on Adult Swim on Cartoon Network, a unit of AT&T Inc T.

Netflix will begin airing the original “Cowboy Bebop” series on Oct. 21. Having the original series could bring a new audience to the storyline via Netflix. The streaming platform could also see new subscribers join the platform to watch the original series and to see if the live adaptation meets fans high demands.

Demand for the series could be high if a recent trend on Twitter Inc TWTR is any indicator. 

John Cho, who stars in the new series, found himself trending on Twitter thanks to his long hair that was grown out to play Spike Spiegel in “Cowboy Bebop.” When fans saw a recording of him with the hair, it quickly became a trending topic.

“After multiple texts, I looked and literally it was trending n Twitter. I couldn’t believe it. I have no idea how to feel about it,” Cho told Entertainment Weekly.

“Cowboy Bebop” has an audience score of 96% on Rotten Tomatoes. The show also has an 8.9 rating out of 10 on IMDB, a movie database owned by Amazon.com Inc AMZN.

The original 1998 series is ranked No. 571 on IMDB for popularity, which could be on the high side for something that came out 23 years ago. The live action series is ranked No. 354 on IMDB for popularity and will be closely monitored to see if it continues higher.

Netflix reported 4.4 million net new subscribers in the third quarter. The company is guiding for 8.5 million net new subscribers in the fourth quarter.

The company’s fourth quarter includes “Squid Game” and the return of many of its most successful series of all time.

NFLX Price Action: Netflix shares were down 0.86% at $633.52 Wednesday morning.