Guess who’s back?! Toho Pictures has unveiled the first teaser trailer for the monsterverse adventure Shin Ultraman, an update on the beloved ’60s TV character from Japan. Toho convinced filmmakers Hideaki Anno & Shinji Higuchi to re-team again after making Shin Godzilla in 2016, updating the classic Ultraman character for modern times. The new Ultraman design is is based on an Ultraman painting by the late Tohl Narita in 1983 called “Incarnation of Truth, Justice, and Beauty”. This first trailer includes glimpses of the monsters Neronga and Gabora. Shin Ultraman stars Takumi Saitoh, who eventually becomes the human host of Ultraman, with Masami Nagasawa and Hidetoshi Nishijima. There’s quite a bit of footage in the teaser – the two monsters look a bit fake (much like Shin Godzilla), but the rest of it seems like good fun.
Here’s the Japanese teaser (+ poster) for Hideaki Anno & Shinji Higuchi’s Shin Ultraman, from YouTube:
An alien is out for justice and pursues a rogue criminal to a planet called Earth. To atone for his deeds he leaves the power and transforms a human into a hero for good and Earthly protection. Thus the Ultra Man is born as fashioned after the original early 1960s televisions serial that was on many Japanese households’ TVs. Shin Ultraman, with the original title シン・ウルトラマン in Japanese, is co-directed by Japanese filmmaking legends Hideaki Anno (Neon Genesis Evangelion) and Shinji Higuchi (known for his visual effects for the Gamera trilogy), both of whom made the Shin Godzilla film a few years ago. The screenplay is written by Hideaki Anno, with Higuchi credited as director. It’s produced by Toho Pictures, Tsuburaya Productions, Khara Corporation, and Cine Bazar. There’s still no official release date set yet – it’s expected to arrive in cinemas in Japan later this year. Stay tuned for more updates. First impression? Cool?
