Live-Action Gundam Film Announces More Cast

September 17, 2025

Netflix announced on Monday that additional cast members have joined the latest live-action Gundam film, a project from Sunrise and Legendary Pictures. The company also confirmed that production is now underway in Queensland and shared a brief outline of the film’s original story.

Jackson White (Tell Me Lies), Nonso Anozie (Sweet Tooth), Javon ‘Wanna’ Walton (Under the Bridge), Oleksandr Rudynskyi (The Agency), Ida Brooke (Dune: Part Three), and Jason Isaacs (The White Lotus) have joined the cast.

Story:

The forthcoming live-action adventure movie will bring the defining mech franchise to life with an original story that follows rival mech pilots fighting on opposite sides of decades-long war between Earth and its space former colonies. “As shifting allegiances and a growing threat set them on a collision course for one another,” reads an early description of the film, “they're pulled into a high-stakes race across the stars that could define the fate of humanity. With awe-inspiring battles, intimate human emotion, and an epic cinematic scale, this is Gundam like it's been seen before.”

Deadline previously reported that Netflix is set to distribute the film. The outlet also named several actors attached to star, including Sydney Sweeney, Noah Centineo, Michael Mando, Shioli Kutsuna, and Gemma Chua-Tran.

Additionally, Jason Clarke had previously been linked to the project, but more recent reports indicate that he has since departed from the film.

Bandai Namco Holdings USA Inc. established a wholly owned subsidiary, Bandai Namco Filmworks America, LLC, in April 2025 under the oversight of Bandai Namco Filmworks. The new entity aims to strengthen international licensing operations and brand management efforts ahead of the planned live-action film. In January, Bandai Namco Filmworks also entered into a joint investment agreement with Legendary Pictures for the project.

According to Deadline, reported in October 2024, Jim Mickle known for his work as showrunner on Sweet Tooth-is set to write and direct the film. He will also produce alongside his partner Linda Moran through their production company, Nightshade.

Netflix originally announced in November 2021 that it would distribute an earlier version of the project worldwide and released concept art at the time. The company also revealed that Jordan Vogt-Roberts (Kong: Skull Island) would serve as director and executive producer. Deadline later reported that comic book writer Brian K. Vaughan (Y: The Last Man, Ex Machina, Runaways) was attached to write the screenplay and act as an executive producer. Makoto Asanuma was also previously credited as an executive producer, while Mary Parent, Cale Boyter, and Naohiro Ogata were listed as producers.

At a Project Anime session in March 2019, Robert Napton and Ken Iyadomi explained that the Gundam Unicorn cameo in Pacific Rim: Uprising helped build the relationship between Sunrise and Legendary Pictures, paving the way for discussions about a live-action Gundam project. Iyadomi noted that while reaching the right decision-makers was initially challenging, Sunrise’s CEO was quick to support the idea. He also mentioned that Legendary’s relatively small structure allowed for faster decision-making during negotiations.

Earlier, at Anime Expo in July 2018, Boyter appeared alongside Mitsuaki Taguchi to formally announce the adaptation, with Napton moderating the panel discussion.

In April 2018, the “Gundam Franchise’s New Work Unveiling” event introduced a tentative project titled Mobile Suit Gundam UC2, described as an “overseas drama” set in Universal Century 0104 and initially planned for a 2022 launch. However, shortly after the reveal, Harutoshi Fukui-author of Gundam Unicorn-jokingly told the audience to disregard the visual that had just been shown.

Back to blog