Netflix is heading back into the world of Parasyte with a brand new live-action series, Parasyte: TAMIYA, arriving in 2027 – after the success of Parasyte: The Grey, Netflix is clearly not finished exploring the strange, unsettling world created by manga artist Hitoshi Iwaaki, and this time, the series is going back to one of the original manga’s most fascinating characters – Ryoko Tamiya.
A Different Side of the Parasyte Story
Parasyte: TAMIYA will tell the story from Ryoko Tamiya’s perspective, following her attempts to exist within human society while trying to understand the creatures she once saw as enemies – in the original manga, Tamiya takes over the body of a high school teacher and begins studying human behaviour, but over time, her experiences with humans, including her own complicated relationship with motherhood and survival, force her to rethink what it means to be alive.
Shioli Kutsuna Takes on the Role of Ryoko Tamiya
The series will star Shioli Kutsuna as Ryoko Tamiya, with the actor taking on what she describes as the most challenging role of her career – Kutsuna, known internationally for roles in Deadpool 2 and Gundam, will play multiple versions of the character – her human identity, her more violent parasite side, and the version of Tamiya who begins searching for a way to coexist with humanity.
The Team Behind ‘Parasyte: The Grey’ Returns
Netflix is also bringing back several key creatives from Parasyte: The Grey, including Yeon Sang-ho, the director behind Train to Busan and Hellbound, who returns to help develop the new series and write the script alongside Ryu Yong-jae – the pair previously worked together on Parasyte: The Grey, which brought the franchise into a modern Korean setting while introducing a completely new group of characters – and this time, the creative team appears to be taking a different approach by connecting more directly with the original manga.
Directing duties will be handled by Kensaku Kakimoto and Kazuhiro Nakagawa, with production company WOWPOINT also returning after working on the previous series.
Why ‘Parasyte: TAMIYA’ Could Be Interesting
The thing that has always made Parasyte stand out is that underneath all the body horror and creature mayhem, it is really a story about what separates humans from everything else – the parasites are terrifying because they look like us but are not us – they can copy our faces, live in our homes, and walk through society unnoticed.
That is exactly why Tamiya is such an interesting character to focus on too, as she starts as someone who sees humans as disposable, but slowly begins to understand their emotions, relationships, and struggles – Netflix Japan’s Yoshihiro Sato has highlighted those same ideas, pointing to the franchise’s long-running questions about what makes someone human and whether different beings can truly coexist.
Netflix clearly sees plenty of life left in the franchise after Parasyte: The Grey, which was a major success for the streaming service when it arrived in 2024, spending four weeks on Netflix’s Global Top 10 Non-English TV list and reaching number one in 34 countries.
With that success behind it, Parasyte: TAMIYA feels like the next logical step – a chance to explore another part of the story while bringing one of the manga’s most memorable characters into the spotlight – there is no trailer yet, but with the series scheduled for 2027, expect Netflix to start revealing more details over the coming months.
Parasyte: TAMIYA will stream worldwide on Netflix in 2027.
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