Six years later to the day we’re still reeling over the loss of Anthony Bourdain (June 25 is Bourdain’s birthday, and therefore was declared Bourdain Day in 2019). And while we’ve been relying on re-watching old episodes of the shows left behind in his legacy–No Reservations, Parts Unknown, and A Cook’s Tour, among others–we’ll soon have something new from Bourdain to watch!
According to Hollywood Reporter, Get Jiro, a graphic novel co-written by Anthony Bourdain and novelist Joel Rose, has been picked up for an animated show adaptation by Adult Swim.
Get Jiro, a New York Times best-selling series, was published in DC Comics in 2012. Bourdain and Rose released a prequel, Get Jiro: Blood and Sushi, three years later in 2015.
Set in a future version of LA, the graphic novel follows a ruthless sushi chef named Jiro, the protagonist, who decapitates customers “who dare request a California Roll, or who stir wasabi into their soy sauce,” reads a description of the book on Amazon.
The novel is 162-pages-worth of satirical takes on food and reservation culture–”master chefs rule the town like crime lords and people literally kill for a seat at the best restaurants.”
And considering Bourdain said in an interview about the novel that he’s “been a comics fan since childhood–when [he] was a serious collector of early Marvels” and he was an acclaimed chef with quite the sarcastic voice, it’s only fitting he jumped on the opportunity to co-write the graphic novel.
As for what inspired the story? Bourdain says he “clearly love[d] Japan…But the book reflects a lot of [his] food obsessions (funky classic brasserie/bistro) and prejudices.”
Bourdain stated:
I think the explosion of interest in chefs and restaurants is certainly easy fodder for satire. But my motivation was really nothing more than to help tell a story that would be fun, extremely bloody, beautifully illustrated–and insanely detailed as to the specifics of cooking and eating.
Hollywood Reporter writes that the animated half-hour show will be created by Brian Gatewood and Alessandro Tanaka, who co-wrote last year’s A24 feature Sharper. Both were also producers on NBC’s comedy series Superstore.
As of now there’s no release date or projected cast members.