Skip to main content
  • TotalFilm
  • Edge
  • Newsarama
  • Retrogamer
GamesRadar+ GamesRadar+
US EditionUS CA EditionCanada UK EditionUK AU EditionAustralia
Sign in
  • View Profile
  • Sign out
  • News
  • Reviews
  • Features
  • More
    • PS5
    • Xbox Series X
    • Nintendo Switch
    • Nintendo Switch 2
    • PC
    • Platforms
    • Tabletop Gaming
    • Comics
    • Toys & Collectibles
    • Newsarama
    • Retro Gamer
    • Newsletters
    • About us
    • Features
Trending
  • Best Netflix Movies
  • Movie Release Dates
  • Best movies on Disney Plus
  • Best Netflix Shows
Don't miss these
Jujutsu Kaisen season 3
Anime Shows New anime in 2026: the biggest upcoming and ongoing shows, including release dates
Demon Slayer Infinity Castle
Anime Movies Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle 2: release date speculation, story, and everything else we know about the anime sequel
The first Resident Evil movie
Horror Movies Resident Evil director Paul W. S. Anderson says adapting games without playing them is "outrageous"
Alan Ritchson as 81 in War Machine
Sci-Fi Movies War Machine director says practical FX was "paramount" to make the sci-fi action movie feel as real as possible
Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 lead Gustave faces a gommage
RPGs Clair Obscur Expedition 33 took inspiration from a surprising anime - Soul Eater creator's Fire Force
Dan Da Dan season 2: Okarun and Momo getting ready for a fight during Dan Da Dan season 1 episode 8.
Anime Shows Best anime on Netflix: 30 shows to stream in 2026
Norgal the warrior beheading a monster
Animated Shows The studio behind Mobile Suit Gundam GQuuuuuuX almost made the perfect fantasy anime, but only 2 minutes of it exist
Nicolas Cage as Ben Reilly in Spider-Noir
Superhero Shows Nicolas Cage wanted to play his 1930s superhero detective in Spider-Noir like a "spider pretending to be a person"
Elden Ring
Fantasy Movies Elden Ring movie release date speculation, cast, director, and more
Shadow (Keanu Reeves) in Sonic 3
Movies Every upcoming video game movie you need to know about in 2026 and beyond
A character stood in front of a pile of weapons in BAKI-DOU: The Invincible Samurai.
Streaming Services This week's Netflix top 10 shows and 3 you need on your watchlist right now (March 7–8)
Dan Da Dan season 3: three kids standing together in blue light during Dan Da Dan season 2
Anime Shows Dan Da Dan season 3: release date, story speculation, and everything else we know about the Netflix anime
Demon Slayer
Anime Shows Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle release date, review, recap, and everything else you need to know
Keanu Reeves in The Matrix Resurrections
Action Movies Matrix 5 gets a brand new update from writer and director Drew Goddard
Cyberpunk Edgerunners
Anime Shows Cyberpunk: Edgerunners season 2: Everything we know about CD Projekt Red's anime
  1. Entertainment
  2. TV
  3. Anime Shows
  4. Devil May Cry

Devil May Cry producer says he wanted the new Netflix anime to feel "like a Hollywood blockbuster" inspired by The Matrix and Christopher Nolan's Batman

News
By Mireia Mullor Contributions from Ashley Bardhan published 31 March 2025

It's all about "psychological realism"

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works.

Dante in Netflix's Devil May Cry
(Image credit: Netflix)
  • Facebook
  • X
  • Pinterest
  • Flipboard
  • Email
Share this article
0
Join the conversation
Follow us
Add us as a preferred source on Google
Get the GamesRadar+ Newsletter

Bringing all the latest movie news, features, and reviews to your inbox


By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.

You are now subscribed

Your newsletter sign-up was successful


An account already exists for this email address, please log in.
Subscribe to our newsletter

Netflix's new Devil May Cry anime adaptation was inspired by some of the most iconic Hollywood blockbusters of the early noughties, according to showrunner Adi Shankar.

In an exclusive interview with GamesRadar+ ahead of the release of the show, Shankar mentioned The Matrix and Christopher Nolan's Batman trilogy among some of his biggest references while creating this new title in the beloved franchise.

"What I wanted to do with this was three things. First of all, the original anime was very much like a monster of the week-style format, until you got to the last three episodes – then it was an arc. But this one, I wanted it to feel like a giant movie, like a Hollywood blockbuster from between 1999 and 2004. References being The Matrix, Underworld, Bad Boys, Equilibrium – I could go on, and on, and on. But I wanted it to feel like a Hollywood blockbuster, and, really, I wanted the audience to experience Devil May Cry in that mold," he told GamesRadar+.

You may like
  • Devil May Cry season 2 Netflix's Devil May Cry season 2 shares new look as showrunner promises an unpredictable follow-up
  • Solo Leveling 2025 was anime's biggest year yet – and may have provided the blueprint for a decade of domination
  • Christopher Nolan with his Oscars for Oppenheimer Christopher Nolan says he has "very, very significant concerns" about the Warner Bros. Netflix sale

Shankar said he made the decision to set the story "in the real world" in order to approach it "with psychological realism". In this sense, another big pop culture reference came to mind.

"It was inspired by Christopher Nolan's Batman trilogy, because it's Batman – it's the Batman you know, [Nolan] didn't, like, make any wild changes or anything. But he's setting it in the real world, right? It's not in this, like, Tim Burton world. It's not in this Joel Schumacher world. It's not in a cartoon world. It's in the real world," the showrunner explained.

"The reason for that [decision to set Devil May Cry in New York City], actually, is the DMC franchise, at its core, is – the characters are all rooted in tragedy, their backstories are. So, I think moving into the real world allowed that tragedy to become even more relatable and even more grounded in reality, and grounded in psychological realism," he added.

The synopsis for the eight-episode show reads, "Sinister forces are at play at the portal between the human and demon realms. In the middle of it all is Dante, an orphaned demon hunter for hire, unaware that the fate of both worlds hangs around his neck."

Sign up for the Total Film Newsletter

Bringing all the latest movie news, features, and reviews to your inbox

By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.

Devil May Cry will arrive on Netflix on April 3, 2025. Check out our Devil May Cry release schedule to know when all episodes drop on streaming, and see our list for the most anticipated new anime coming soon.

If that wasn't enough, we also have guides to the best anime and best anime on Netflix too to keep your watchlist stocked.

CATEGORIES
Netflix Streaming Services
Mireia Mullor
Mireia Mullor
Social Links Navigation
Contributing Writer

Mireia is a UK-based culture journalist and critic. She previously worked as Deputy Movies Editor at Digital Spy, and her work as a freelance writer has appeared in WeLoveCinema and Spanish magazines Fotogramas, Esquire, and Elle. She is also a published author, having written a book about Studio Ghibli's 'Kiki's Delivery Service' in 2023. Talking about anime and musicals is the best way to grab her attention.

With contributions from
  • Ashley BardhanSenior Writer

You must confirm your public display name before commenting

Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name.

Read more
Devil May Cry season 2
Netflix's Devil May Cry season 2 shares new look as showrunner promises an unpredictable follow-up
 
 
Solo Leveling
2025 was anime's biggest year yet – and may have provided the blueprint for a decade of domination
 
 
Christopher Nolan with his Oscars for Oppenheimer
Christopher Nolan says he has "very, very significant concerns" about the Warner Bros. Netflix sale
 
 
Keanu Reeves in The Matrix Resurrections
Matrix 5 gets a brand new update from writer and director Drew Goddard
 
 
Dan Da Dan season 2: Okarun and Momo getting ready for a fight during Dan Da Dan season 1 episode 8.
Best anime on Netflix: 30 shows to stream in 2026
 
 
Cyberpunk Edgerunners
Cyberpunk: Edgerunners season 2: Everything we know about CD Projekt Red's anime
 
 
Latest in Anime Shows
Monkey D. Luffy looking confused on an island in One Piece Egghead Island
One Piece season 2 answers a near 30-year-old manga mystery in surprisingly straightforward fashion
 
 
One Piece
One Piece season 2 is a live-action adaptation to treasure as it debuts to perfect Rotten Tomatoes score
 
 
Yuta getting ready to attack in Jujutsu Kaisen season 3
Jujutsu Kaisen actor offers perfect response to why AI should stay out of anime
 
 
How to watch Neon Genesis Evangelion in order
Evangelion studio leaks its own 30th anniversary short after "insufficient understanding of X’s takedown request system"
 
 
A close-up of Luffy holding his fist during the anime One Piece.
As One Piece season 2 hits Netflix, you can now catch up on 13 seasons of the original anime for free
 
 
Iñaki Godoy as Monkey D. Luffy Emily Rudd as Nami and Jacob Romero as Usopp standing on the deck of the Merry in One Piece season 2
One Piece season 2 review: "It's hard to imagine a better version of One Piece in live action"
 
 
Latest in News
Dragon Quest 11
Dragon Quest creator says English is "a simple language," so "the flavor tends to get lost" when translating games
 
 
Resident Evil Requiem
Resident Evil Requiem is too scary for series veteran Hideki Kamiya, who argues Capcom "should make a 'non-scary' mode"
 
 
Yoshi and the Mysterious Boook screenshot of Yoshi smiling with eyes closed
The next big Switch 2 exclusive, Yoshi and the Mysterious Book, gets a May release date out of nowhere
 
 
Monkey D. Luffy looking confused on an island in One Piece Egghead Island
One Piece season 2 answers a near 30-year-old manga mystery in surprisingly straightforward fashion
 
 
Runescape
MMO raises subscription prices less than 2 months after ditching microtransactions, causing a RuneScape fan revolt
 
 
One Piece
One Piece season 2 is a live-action adaptation to treasure as it debuts to perfect Rotten Tomatoes score
 
 
LATEST ARTICLES
  1. Monkey D. Luffy looking confused on an island in One Piece Egghead Island
    1
    One Piece season 2 answers a near 30-year-old manga mystery in surprisingly straightforward fashion
  2. 2
    Corsair's two best gaming chairs have been hit with discounts in Amazon's Spring sale
  3. 3
    Resident Evil Requiem is too scary for series veteran Hideki Kamiya, who argues Capcom "should make a 'non-scary' mode"
  4. 4
    The next big Switch 2 exclusive, Yoshi and the Mysterious Book, gets a May release date out of nowhere
  5. 5
    MMO raises subscription prices less than 2 months after ditching microtransactions, causing a RuneScape fan revolt

GamesRadar+ is part of Future US Inc, an international media group and leading digital publisher. Visit our corporate site.

Add as a preferred source on Google Add as a preferred source on Google
  • Terms and conditions
  • Contact Future's experts
  • Privacy policy
  • Cookies policy
  • Accessibility statement
  • Careers
  • About us
  • Advertise with us
  • Review guidelines
  • Write for us
  • Accessibility Statement

© Future US, Inc. Full 7th Floor, 130 West 42nd Street, New York, NY 10036.

Please login or signup to comment

Please wait...