'Cuphead' goes Hollywood with new Netflix show on the horizon

Netflix has had anything but a quiet past year — in the last 12 months, the streaming giant secured what is probably the most popular show in the platforms’ history with Squid Game, and has started the process towards content diversification, specifically within the gaming space. Just last month, some information trickled out that pointed towards a live-action Mega Man adaptation for the company.

While the Mega Man news seemed to revolve around speculation more than any concrete announcement, a trailer dropped today that offers a continuation of the video-game-IP-to-streaming-series pipeline. A trailer for The Cuphead Show! was released this week, which will “follow the unique misadventures of loveable, impulsive scamp Cuphead and his cautious but easily swayed brother Mugman.” You can check it out below:

The show is set to debut next month on February 18 and, judging by the chaotic nature of the trailer, looks to be a fairly adventurous ride. Known for its high level of difficulty, Cuphead was released in the fall of 2017 and offered a run-and-gun, sidescrolling gaming experience with an old-school animation style.

Blast from the past— The game’s aesthetic was based on Walt Disney animations from the 1930s, which set up the project to be adaptable to streaming. Cuphead felt uniquely nostalgic and surrealist at the same time — sure characters sounded old-timey and the look obviously paid homage to classic animation styles, but the high-wired gameplay made for a modern playing experience.

Earlier in the summer, Netflix released a clip from the show (an interesting choice given that a trailer had yet to be released) that introduced fans to a character by the name of King Dice. In the clip, we can sort of get a glimpse of the tonal direction of the program, which seems to be a combination of boisterous misadventure and slapstick/physical comedy.

As Polygon noted, the game’s original creators, Chad and Jared Moldenhauer, will serve as executive producers for the series and will be joined on the production side by Dave Wasson (Mickey Mouse Shorts), and Cosmo Segurson (Rocko’s Modern Life: Static Cling). Both Adam Paloian (SpongeBob SquarePants) and Clay Morrow (Mickey Mouse Shorts), will be directing.

Strap in and get ready to watch Cuphead and Mugman hurtle towards a meeting with the devil!