Image: 2026 Shirow Masamune/KODANSHA/THE GHOST IN THE SHELL COMMITTEE
AMBot | 07/07/2026 | Reading Time: 3 Min.
On July 7, 2026, the new TV anime series »Ghost in the Shell: THE GHOST IN THE SHELL« premiered on the Japanese channel Kansai TV/Fuji TV within the programming slot »Hika Animaru!!«. Simultaneously with the broadcast of the first episode, the production team revealed the long-withheld main cast of voice actors. This ended months of speculation about the successors to the legendary voices of the previous works.
The role of the iconic protagonist Motoko Kusanagi – the “Major” – is taken on by Maaya Sakamoto. She had already voiced the character in the »Ghost in the Shell: Arise« films (2013–2015) and the subsequent theatrical film »Ghost in the Shell: The New Movie« (2015). Additionally, Sakamoto lent her voice to the young Motoko in the closing scene of the first 1995 theatrical film. She thus takes over the legacy of Atsuko Tanaka, who had embodied the role since 1995 in numerous productions and passed away in August 2024.
The other main roles of the special unit Section 9 have also been recast: Kazuhiko Yamaji voices Chief Daisuke Aramaki, Hiroki Yasumoto the combat-strong Batou, Yuichi Nakamura the investigator Togusa, Kosuke Goto the technician Ishikawa, Toru Nara the sniper Saito, and Tomoko Kaneda the AI-controlled tanks Fuchikoma. Thus, the entire core staff has been replaced compared to earlier anime adaptations.
The series is produced by Studio Science SARU, known for its distinctive visual style. Direction is handled by Mokochan, who makes his debut as a series director with this project. The series concept and scripts are written by award-winning science fiction author EnJoe Toh. Character design and the position of chief animator are taken on by Shuhei Handa. The visual design of the new anime strongly draws from the imagery of Masamune Shirow's original and has already been praised by fans and critics in advance.
The series' music is composed by Taisei Iwasaki, who also serves as music director. The opening theme »GO GHOST« is contributed by the Japanese band King Gnu, while the ending theme »Blue« is performed by the group Millennium Parade in collaboration with Canadian-Japanese artist Saya Gray and Grammy-winning musician Daniel Caesar. Both music videos have been released by the producers in a credit-free version on YouTube.
The series airs weekly in Japan on Tuesdays at 11:00 PM (JST). Simultaneously, international release occurs via Prime Video, which offers the episodes in simulcast just 30 minutes after the Japanese broadcast in over 240 countries and regions. Additionally, the series is available on numerous other streaming services such as ABEMA, Netflix, Disney+, Hulu, and others.
Even before its release, the new »Ghost in the Shell« anime caused a stir: The project was presented to the world public at the Annecy International Animated Film Festival in France and was featured there in the “Special Events” program. A North American premiere of the first two episodes with a panel of producers also took place at Anime Expo 2026 in Los Angeles.
The role of the iconic protagonist Motoko Kusanagi – the “Major” – is taken on by Maaya Sakamoto. She had already voiced the character in the »Ghost in the Shell: Arise« films (2013–2015) and the subsequent theatrical film »Ghost in the Shell: The New Movie« (2015). Additionally, Sakamoto lent her voice to the young Motoko in the closing scene of the first 1995 theatrical film. She thus takes over the legacy of Atsuko Tanaka, who had embodied the role since 1995 in numerous productions and passed away in August 2024.
The other main roles of the special unit Section 9 have also been recast: Kazuhiko Yamaji voices Chief Daisuke Aramaki, Hiroki Yasumoto the combat-strong Batou, Yuichi Nakamura the investigator Togusa, Kosuke Goto the technician Ishikawa, Toru Nara the sniper Saito, and Tomoko Kaneda the AI-controlled tanks Fuchikoma. Thus, the entire core staff has been replaced compared to earlier anime adaptations.
The series is produced by Studio Science SARU, known for its distinctive visual style. Direction is handled by Mokochan, who makes his debut as a series director with this project. The series concept and scripts are written by award-winning science fiction author EnJoe Toh. Character design and the position of chief animator are taken on by Shuhei Handa. The visual design of the new anime strongly draws from the imagery of Masamune Shirow's original and has already been praised by fans and critics in advance.
The series' music is composed by Taisei Iwasaki, who also serves as music director. The opening theme »GO GHOST« is contributed by the Japanese band King Gnu, while the ending theme »Blue« is performed by the group Millennium Parade in collaboration with Canadian-Japanese artist Saya Gray and Grammy-winning musician Daniel Caesar. Both music videos have been released by the producers in a credit-free version on YouTube.
The series airs weekly in Japan on Tuesdays at 11:00 PM (JST). Simultaneously, international release occurs via Prime Video, which offers the episodes in simulcast just 30 minutes after the Japanese broadcast in over 240 countries and regions. Additionally, the series is available on numerous other streaming services such as ABEMA, Netflix, Disney+, Hulu, and others.
Even before its release, the new »Ghost in the Shell« anime caused a stir: The project was presented to the world public at the Annecy International Animated Film Festival in France and was featured there in the “Special Events” program. A North American premiere of the first two episodes with a panel of producers also took place at Anime Expo 2026 in Los Angeles.
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This article was originally published in German. It was translated with technical support and editorially reviewed before publication.
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