The official portal of Wit Studio's original anime series, 'Great Pretender,' announced a new project in development as a sequel titled 'Great Pretender: razbliuto,' scheduled for worldwide release in 2024.
The anime presentation will take place in Japan through DMM TV, while Crunchyroll will handle the streaming in over 200 countries outside of China. Additionally, Manga Productions has acquired the anime licensing rights for 16 Middle Eastern countries.
The recently revealed visual teaser highlights the presence of a new character named Dorothy, a talented scammer who adds to the plot.
The anime's creative team mostly consists of original members. Hiro Kaburagi resumes his role as director, but this time, he will also be involved in series composition alongside Taku Kishimoto. Ryota Kosawa, the previous head writer, will supervise the scripts. Mai Teshima joins as assistant director, and Shōsuke Ishibashi takes on the role of chief animation director instead of Kyoji Asano. Hirotaka Katō returns as chief animation director, while Akiyo Okuda and Shōsuke Ishibashi retain their credits. Yumiko Sudou joins as art director alongside Yūsuke Takeda.
The original anime premiered in July 2020 on Fuji TV's +Ultra programming block and consisted of two cours, totaling 23 episodes. Netflix began global streaming outside Japan in August 2020, releasing it first in Japan.
Anime Limited will handle the home video release in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and Ireland.
The plot follows Makoto Edamura, self-proclaimed 'Japan's greatest swindler,' on a journey that begins with an attempt to scam a French tourist in Tokyo. However, this simple job turns into an odyssey that takes Edamura to Los Angeles, tied upside down to the famous Hollywood sign, triggering a series of bewildering events.
The series is directed by Hiro Kaburagi, with character design by Yoshiyuki Sadamoto, scripts by Ryota Kosawa, and music by Yutaka Yamada, who composed the opening theme 'G.P.' The closing theme features a version by Freddie Mercury, the late Queen singer, of The Platters' song 'The Great Pretender,' marking a milestone as the first time a Mercury song is featured as an anime theme.
Daichi Marui launched a manga adaptation in June 2020 on the Mag Comi website of Mag Garden and the LINE Manga service, although serialization paused in September 2020 due to the creator's health issues.
