The global X (formerly Twitter) account for anime studio Gonzo wished followers a Happy New Year and shared exciting news about its future. It was revealed that the studio is developing two new TV series “set to premiere within this year and next.” These would mark the studio’s first TV series since Phantasy Star Online 2: Episode Oracle‘s conclusion in 2020. You can find Ishikawa’s full letter below.
Dear Fans,
Happy New Year!!
This is Shinichiro Ishikawa, CEO of GONZO,
As we step into a new year, I would like to share some exciting news with our esteemed fans around the world. We are currently in the midst of developing two new TV series set to premiere within this year and next!
Please look forward to our upcoming announcements, and thank you for your unwavering support — it truly motivates us!
With a diverse portfolio of over 80 titles, GONZO is thrilled to announce a series of events planned for this year. In March, we will celebrate the 20th anniversary of Basilisk with a special live painting session at Anime Japan! In April, I will be participating in the Kaleido Star event as well, here is my effort to draw Johnathan….
We sincerely hope you can join us at these gatherings!
For the latest updates, please follow our GONZO Global X account @GONZOAnimeIntl. We are committed to creating captivating entertainment alongside you!
Be Creative!
Be Global!
Be Happy!
While the two specific projects are unconfirmed, it’s worth noting that animation studio N LITE (Mfinda) announced a partnership with Gonzo last year to produce two upcoming projects: Ripper and Hotaru. As exclusively reported by Variety, Ripper was described as a “live-action/anime hybrid feature” while Hotaru is a TV series. Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse co-director Peter Ramsey is executive producing both projects and will co-write Ripper, which was described as “the story of two detectives hunting down a serial killer who took the lives of the women that each of them loved.” Hotaru is a “swashbuckling sci-fi/fantasy adventure series about two star-crossed magic-wielding warriors bound by love and grief.” You can check out the staff and comments below.
Ripper staff:
- Creators: Samantha Inoue Harte, Paul Alvarado-Dykstra, Rafael Antonio Ruiz
- Executive Producers: Peter Ramsey, Shinichiro Ishikawa, Julius Tennon, Melanie Clark, Samantha Inoue Harte, Paul Alvarado-Dykstra, Christiano Terry
- Animation Production: Gonzo
Hotaru staff:
- Creators: Samantha Inoue Harte, Paul Alvarado-Dykstra, Christiano Terry
- Executive Producers: Peter Ramsey, Samantha Inoue Harte, Paul Alvarado-Dykstra
- Producer: Christiano Terry
- Animation Production: Gonzo
Gonzo’s Upcoming Ripper Features an “Intersection That We’ve Not Yet Seen on Screen”
Executive producer Peter Ramsey said of Ripper:
“I’m excited to collaborate with N Lite on a project that is deeply personal. The shared experiences of Black and Japanese people in Japan during WWII is a historical and cultural intersection that we’ve not yet seen on screen. It’s also an incredible time for anime as a whole, and as a true lover of the medium, I’m eager to create something that has never been done before.“
Hotaru producer Christiano Terry said:
“Building cultural bridges and meaningful partnerships with our peers and senpai in the anime community is paramount to our vision and growth as a studio. I’m honored that Gonzo and Ishikawa-san have chosen to align with us. Afro Samurai and many of Gonzo’s legacy titles are an inspiration to the work we’re creating today. I’m excited to captivate fans around the world with our afro-anime projects, and absolutely thrilled to collaborate with the brilliant Peter Ramsey.”
Gonzo founder Shinichiro Ishikawa said:
“All of us at Gonzo are proud to partner with N Lite and Peter Ramsey on these bold new original projects. They were conceived as inclusive international co-productions for diverse global audiences, and N Lite is the perfect match given our shared vision and values. We are honored to attract such esteemed creative collaborators who share our commitment to innovative storytelling.”
Gonzo Announces 2025 TV Series As Fans Await Kakuriyo: Bed & Breakfast for Spirits Studio Update
With Ripper definitively ruled out as a feature film and Hotaru‘s release date unknown, it raises questions about whether Gonzo will return as the studio for the Kakuriyo: Bed & Breakfast for Spirits anime series. Season 1 ended in 2018 and Season 2 was announced last year for Fall 2025 but no studio has been confirmed. The series adapts Midori Yuma’s light novel series published under KADOKAWA’s Fujimi L Bunko imprint. In addition to being the studio in charge of production, Gonzo was listed at the top of Kakuriyo: Bed & Breakfast for Spirits‘ production committee, indicating its position as a major rightsholder.
Nevertheless, in 2019, Gonzo announced that it had executed an “absorption-type company split,” transferring part of its rights and obligations to Studio KAI following years of financial straits (via ANN). It’s unclear whether these rights included Kakuriyo: Bed & Breakfast for Spirits.
Gonzo’s listed date of founding is February 29, 2000, following the establishment of Gonzo Digimation Holding Co., Ltd: a holding company that made subsidiaries of Gonzo Co. Ltd. — founded by former GAINAX staff and affiliates — and Ishikawa’s Digimation Co., Ltd. They merged in 2002. In 2008, the company posted massive financial losses; Iwakaze Capital Inc. would later invest in, and acquire most of Gonzo’s shares. These were then acquired by Asatsu-DK (ADK) in 2016. In 2018, ADK’s Ryoichi Katsumura succeeded Ishikawa as president, with Ishikawa becoming a Gonzo board member (via ANN).
In 2019, ADK was reorganized into ADK Holdings. On March 13, 2020, Animation Business Journal reported that Gonzo’s 934,972 shares would be consolidated down to 24, allowing ADK Holdings’ ADK Marketing Solutions to make the studio a wholly owned subsidiary and then sell all the shares to Ishikawa. The consolidation became effective on March 30, 2020 (PDF) and Ishikawa purchased all shares the same year making Gonzo independent from ADK (Comic Natalie). He now serves as president and CEO.
You can read Gonzo’s rather storied history in Ishikawa’s interview with Comic Natalie and its company history page. The studio is known for many hit anime series like Welcome to the N.H.K., Hellsing, Rosario + Vampire, Full Metal Panic!, Afro Samurai, Gantz, and more. Gonzo launched the SAMURAI cryptos NFT project in 2021, enlisting artists and animators to create content to supplement auctions of NFTs.
Source: Gonzo Anime Global X (formerly Twitter)
Featured image: © Kouta Hirano・Shonen Gahosha/WILD GEESE © 2006 Welcome to the N.H.K. Production Committee © Akihisa Ikeda/Shueisha・Yokai Academy Newspaper Club © 2009 Takashi Okazaki・GONZO
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