The Neon Genesis Evangelion’s final reboot is current on deck and set for release in 2020. This release has been more than five years in the making. In fact, the 4.0 build-out of the movie was slated for 2015. It is not completely clear as to why it has taken so long. Of course, production has played into the delay, but there is likely more behind it than production.
The company responsible for producing the movie, Studio Khara, has not yet produced an official trailer; however, that does not mean that an unofficial trailer is unavailable. In fact, this past week, people in Japan got to see the impromptu trailer. These unofficial trailers were not the work of the studio but of fan who had access to the film when it showed in Japan. Studio Khara is going to great lengths to have those unauthorized uploads floating around the internet removed. If you have access to a trailer online, it is probably a good idea to download it before it comes down.
Studio Khara is working hard to preserve the mystique of the movie until it hits mainstream, but the massive expanse of the internet and the thousands of sites that facilitate video uploads are making extremely difficult. The clip that is floating around is not anywhere close to being a full trailer. It only lasts for a whopping 20 seconds. The fact that a 20-second clip is getting so much attention is a testament to the popularity of the movie and the anticipation of fans. What makes this short clip so intriguing is the fact that it highlights some serious Eva-On-Eva confrontation. Eva is a major character who made her debut in the 2.0 version of the movie.
The buildout of the initial movie actually began more than a decade ago in 2007. It was initially announced as a simple remake of the original film, but before long it was clear to see that this was something all-together different. The 2.0 version introduced at least three new characters that were not in the initial movie, which in and of itself makes it more than a remake. It is at the very lease and expansion of the storyline. The 3.0 version deviates even more on a dramatic level. The complexity in the plot changes created in the two previous build-outs has placed a great deal of pressure on the producers and director of the fourth film to create continuity as well as match the intensity.
If the 20-second clip that is floating around the internet is any indication, the creators of this fourth and final build-out may have met the challenge of making this the best of all the films.
According to some inside sources, the director of the series, Anno, struggled with burnout and depression after 2015, causing him to put the production of the fourth installment on hold. When he finally recovered in 2016, he was slated to work on the Shin Godzilla, a Godzilla franchise reboot – further delaying the release of Evangelion 4.0. These delays have not come without a serious testing of the patience of the movie’s loyal fan base. There has been delay after delay, and fans have grown increasingly wary of any new projected release dates. They have been disappointed far too often.
Studio Khara and the show’s producers are concerned that it may be difficult to build a buzz around the release date because of the history of pushing the date back. Until these weeks teaser, the only things that fans had to connect with the movie was a poster released back in 2012. Can you believe that there have literally been six years since any type of promotional material was released about the movie? As of right now, the release of the 4.0 version is about two years off – give or take a few months. For those of you who are not familiar with Evangelion, you may want to jump online and check the origin final series, which ran a total of 26 episodes between 1996-1997. After the series ran, it was followed by a full-length movie that many people found tremendously disturbing. If you are looking to by the original movie to develop the context to support the buildout movies, be aware the DVD’s of the movie are not easy to find and they go for a very steep price.
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