Ghost in the Shell director says he doesn't consider the anime to be cyberpunk and he's "not that interested" in the genre: "I don't care about it"

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Mamoru Oshii isn't actually a fan of Cyberpunk

The Major wearing a tank top in Ghost in the Shell
(Image credit: Masamune Shirow/Kodansha Ltd./Bandai Visual Co. Ltd/Manga Entertainment Ltd.)

Despite directing an incredibly influential cyberpunk story, Ghost in the Shell helmer Mamoru Oshii doesn't actually like cyberpunk that much.

"That's a misunderstanding. I'm not that interested in cyberpunk, and I haven't actually read many cyberpunk works, to be honest. I don’t care about it," Oshii told the official Ghost in the Shell YouTube channel (via Automaton Media).

He added: "It may seem like cyborgs mesh well with cyberpunk, but I don't think that’s actually the case. In that sense, I didn't direct Ghost in the Shell thinking it was cyberpunk. It was just that others, on the contrary, said it was."

He explained that he's a fan of the hard-boiled genre, but "cyberpunk doesn't really excite my imagination… I don't have the desire to live in a world that looks like a landfill."

Molly Edwards
Molly Edwards
Deputy Entertainment Editor

I'm the Deputy Entertainment Editor here at GamesRadar+, covering all things film and TV for the site's Total Film and SFX sections. I previously worked on the Disney magazines team at Immediate Media, and also wrote on the CBeebies, MEGA!, and Star Wars Galaxy titles after graduating with a BA in English.

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