Bad news, Ultraman: Rising fans! The anime movie's writer-director Shannon Tindle has confirmed that a sequel isn't likely to happen anytime soon, despite his interest in following up the adventures of Ken and Gigantron.
"I'd love to make another, but currently, it's not in the cards," he spelled out candidly on Twitter recently. "However, I've just started working on something I'm very excited about:) More to come…"
"This is so upsetting," a particularly gutted follower replied. "Ultraman: Rising was the biggest surprise of last year. A movie so magnificent that it skyrocketed to #1 on my favorite films of 2024 list. More people needed to see this film because there was an endless supply of talented individuals who made this Tokusatsu film something truly magical."
"Honestly it's a miracle that a movie like Rising even exists in the first place, so I'll take that as a win at least," said another. "Maybe one day we’ll get a sequel."
Based on Tsuburaya Productions' Ultraman franchise, the film landed on Netflix back in June 2024, and swiftly earned itself an impressive 86% on Rotten Tomatoes. It centers on all-star baseball player Kenji 'Ken' Sato, who abandons his career in the US to return home to Japan and follow in his superhero father's footsteps. Taking on the mantle of Ultraman, he's forced to defend Tokyo from giant monsters. But his mission is compromised when he stumbles across a baby kaiju in need of a family; albeit a 35-foot tall firebreather.
Before long, Sato takes it upon himself to put aside his ego and balance work and parenthood, to protect the little one from those looking to corrupt her immense power.
Christopher Sean (You), Gedde Watanabe (Sixteen Candles), Tamlyn Tomita (Avatar: The Last Airbender), Keone Young (Star Wars Rebels), and Julia Harriman round up the voice cast.
Ultraman: Rising is streaming now on Netflix. For more, check out our guides to all the new anime on the way or our selection of the best anime of all time.
