Science SARU's new TV anime Ghost in the Shell: The Ghost in the Shell released its third PV and key visual, revealing the story of Section 9 investigating a hacker called the Puppet Master. The series premieres July 7 on Kantele and Fuji TV's Funi Bar!! slot.
The new anime project "Mobile Police Patlabor EZY" has brought back the popular character Isao Ota, voiced by Chikao Ohtsuka, who made a surprise appearance at a stage greeting in Tokyo on May 16. Director Yutaka Izubuchi explained the decision, saying he wanted to bring the character out "in a delicious way." Ota is a veteran member of the former Special Vehicles Section 2 from the original OVA series. The stage greeting also featured cast members Sumire Uesaka, Kikunosuke Toya, and Chikahiro Kobayashi. Separately, a new one-shot manga by original creator Masami Yuki, titled "Patlabor 2026," was published in Weekly Spirits on May 18, marking the first new manga in the franchise in 32 years. The anime project consists of eight episodes split into three theatrical chapters. "File 1" opened on May 15, "File 2" is scheduled for August 14, and "File 3" for March 2027. The project has also received recommendation comments from 14 figures including Hideaki Anno, Sumito Owara, and Kenji Kawai.
The new anime adaptation of Masamune's The Ghost in the Shell will begin its television run on July 7, 2026. Science SARU is producing the series, with Bandai Namco Filmworks and Kodansha also attached. The date arrived in a third promotional video that opens on Major Motoko Kusanagi and introduces other members of the Shell Squad. Many of the on-screen text slides in the trailer appear in both Japanese and English, though no official subtitles are present. Before the broadcast, the first two episodes will screen at the Annecy International Animation Film Festival in June 2026. The festival event, titled "Dive into The Ghost in the Shell," will include director Mokochan and producers Daichi Sasa, Kengo Abe, and Kohei Sakita as special guests. A specific time for the Annecy screening has not been posted on the festival's official page or programming site. The new key art was also released alongside the trailer. Earlier character-focused trailers had already spotlighted Makoto, the Tachikoma robots, Batou, and Togusa across separate months leading into this announcement.