Were you a fan of Netflix's adaptation of Cowboy Bebop? Well if so, there's a good chance you'll want to check out Disney's live-action Space Mountain movie when it releases.
That's because Josh Appelbaum and André Nemec have been tapped to write the movie adaptation inspired by the popular Disney ride.
Netflix's Cowboy Bebop was a live-action series based on the popular 1998 Japanese anime series and the 2001 Japanese anime, Cowboy Bebop: The Movie. A space Western set in the year 2071, the series follows the adventure of a ragtag group of bounty hunters who chase down criminals across the Solar System.
Here's where things could get dicey for Disney though. Despite the popularity of the original anime, Netflix's live-action adaptation was panned by critic. With a 45% on Rotten Tomatoes, the series was criticized for its writing, special effects, editing and action sequences. Even Shinichirō Watanabe, the original series' director, criticized the show for straying from the original source material.
Netflix ultimately canceled Cowboy Bebop after just one season, leaving the show to end on a cliffhanger.
Now Josh Appelbaum and André Nemec can't be totally to blame for the show's failure and one thing they do have going for them is the fact that there's no real story behind Space Mountain. It's simply a space-themed indoor roller coaster that's been a fixture in the Tomorrowland section of Florida's Walt Disney World Resort and California's Disneyland since the mid-1970s. There's no real theme or memorable characters seen in the ride, as it's entirely in the dark. However, Space Mountain in Disneyland has been turned into Hyperspace Mountain and is occasionally given a temporary Star Wars makeover on occasion.
To that end, it will be interesting to see the story that Josh Appelbaum and André Nemec will craft with the Space Mountain ride simply acting as inspiration. Currently, there are no details regarding the plot of the upcoming movie.
In addition to Cowboy Bebop, Josh Appelbaum created Amazon's spy action thriller Citadel. Despite the high budget production in the six-episode first season, it was also met with lackluster reviews — and sits at just a 51% on Rotten Tomatoes.
Josh Appelbaum and André Nemec also previously scripted Mission: Impossible: Ghost Protocol and a pair of live-action Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles films for Paramount released in the mid-2010s.
There's no release date yet for Disney's Space Mountain movie, nor story details or casting information. Jonathan Eirich will produce for Rideback, alongside Joby Harold and Tory Tunnell for Safehouse, with Rideback’s Ryan Halprin as executive producer.