Netflix Unveils Castlevania Trailer and Premiere Date

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The teaser trailer for Castlevania has given fans their first look at the Netflix series. After the official announcement that the video game would be making its way to the small screen, very little about the series has been confirmed. Debuting on Netflix, the animated series is being produced by Adventure Time‘s Kevin Kolde and Fred Seibert of Frederator Studios, with Adi Shankar of Bootleg Universe (Punisher: Dirty Laundry, Power/Rangers), and comic writer (and original Castlevania scribe) Warren Ellis pulling both writer and producer credits for the series.

Known for his hyper-violent shorts, Shankar has promised the series will live up to it’s R-rating, even teasing a Game of Thrones vibe. He’s said before that Castlevania was one of his favorite video games as a kid, and he wants this project to be the greatest adaptation ever. The genre has perpetually struggled to find its footing on the big screen, so perhaps the Netflix serial format will be a better fit for the classic adventure horror game. Until now, all fans knew was that the series was set to premiere “sometime in 2017.”

Netflix has finally released its first teaser trailer for the upcoming Castlevania animated series. It’s a throwback to gamer nostalgia as the first third of the teaser is live action and includes a user blowing into an original Nintendo cartridge before inserting it into the NES. 8-bit graphics tease the game’s opening before finally launching into the animated teaser. The ominous voice-over proclaims that “a savior is needed,” as we, presumably, see the story’s protagonist, Trevor Belmont, spring into action.

The characters appear in the teaser are unnamed, but likely include a whip-wielding Belmont (our hero), Dracula, Alucard (son of Dracula), and Sypha (a witch). The Netflix series is most closely related to the third game in the franchise titled Castlevania III: Dracula’s Curse. Koonami released the first game on NES in 1986, and this third installment (which is actually a prequel to the first) in 1989.

The horror franchise really has an opportunity to thrive on a platform like Netflix, especially given the streaming service’s track record with original programming like Stranger Things and Black Mirror. Though not officially confirmed through Netflix, Castlevania‘s summer release is being touted as Part 1, leaving audiences to assume there will be a second season. It sounds like Castlevania will be formatted much like Voltron: Legendary Defender; where its producers had always meant to tell one solid story over multiple seasons/parts.

Castlevania season 1 begins streaming on Netflix July 7th.



[Screen Rant]