Picture: Netflix
Blue Eye Samurai is continuing to have its moment in the sunlight. One of Netflix’s best-animated series in its history has the potential to become one of the most decorated. Renewed for a season 2, the creators have dropped some tidbits in recent weeks about what we can expect.
The show’s creators have been on a summer tour of interviews and campaigning, given that their show snatched six Annie Awards and a couple of Emmy nominations earlier this year. In addition, they just came away with three wins last night in the Emmy juried categories. It won for Character Design (Brian Kesinger), Production Design (Toby Wilson), and Storyboard (Ryan O’Loughlin). We’ll get to find out in mid-September whether the show wins for sound editing or best-animated program at the Primetime Emmys.
There’s been a bunch of interviews so we’ll touch on some of the bigger points and also then run through some other snippets of information at the bottom.
Grace Randolph, on YouTube via her channel Beyond the Trailer, spoke to the trio of creators behind the show, teased out some information about where we’re heading next, and also discussed the show’s viewing figures.
Michael Green said, “Something Netflix shared with us is that we came out, and it wasn’t an explosive coming out. People found it. And most shows on Netflix tend to like pop high and then, find a trough and we held and built.”
While tight-lipped about the future, they did confirm that some old returning and plenty of new characters will appear in the new season but stressed that “it’s early days.”
When will Blue Eye Samurai season 2 be released on Netflix?
Perhaps the biggest question that is on most people’s lips is when they’ll get to see the second season. If you’re familiar with animation, you’ll know that projects don’t just get snapped into reality but go through a long process from concept to script, design, animation, and eventually, to our screens. That prolonged production period is often why many Netflix shows get upfront orders for multiple seasons, and unless they perform spectacularly well, they don’t come back for more.
We’ve seen this play out recently with Blood of Zeus, which took four years to return for its second season after the first.
In an interview on Netflix’s YouTube channel, it was suggested towards the end that it could be up to three years before the show returns which would place it sometime in 2026.
In an interview with The Direct in August 13th, 2024, Michael Green provided the most comprehensive timeline of their current state, saying, “We’ ve written more than half [and] we’re starting to produce the first two. When we’re finished with one more interview, we’re going to look at some early storyboards for the first episode, and it’s not the first round that’s come in.”
- On the Still Watching Netflix YouTube channel, in conversation with Peter Ramsey, Jane Wu said, “Season 2 strives for its best” and that they’re working with the mindset that they “don’t rest on our laurels.”
- Speaking with AwardsDaily, Amber Noizumi teased, “Everything that people got invested in will have a reason to come back for season two.”
- Green, in an interview with GoldDerby, said they’re working with the same team as season 1 but added there are some new faces behind the scenes.
- Collider asked whether the animation style would change given the location change, to which Green responded no, albeit caveated: “There’ll be a lot of surprises.”
- In addition, Collider also asked about spin-offs, with Green saying, “We definitely have a concept for a spin-off we’ve run by our executive at Netflix, Jermaine Turner, and he did not hate it, but that is not a commitment. I wish it was.
Finally, we wanted to conclude with what Michael Green said to AwardsDaily before the interview came to its conclusion, whereby he thanked the fans for their commitment to the show, which allowed them to continue:
“I wish we could spoil everything for season 2, but that seems un-prudent. I have a lot of gratitude that the fans were able to take a shot on a show that’s so unlikely. One of the best compliments we’ve gotten from people, especially older audience members, was we didn’t know animation could do that. Guillermo del Toro says so well and so often that animation is cinema. So being able to show that animation is cinema for all ages and all kinds of stories, and a great delivery system for emotion and character is very satisfying. Then the fact that the audience was willing to give us a shot. We are so grateful, and it was such a wonderful surprise.”
Are you looking forward to Blue Eye Samurai season 2? Let us know in the comments.
Netflix Synopsis: "Driven by a dream of revenge against those who made her an outcast in Edo-period Japan, a young warrior cuts a bloody path toward her destiny."
