Dakota Fanning, Kōichi Yamadera Join Cast of Rooster Teeth’s ‘gen:Lock’ Starring Michael B. Jordan

By Todd Spangler

LOS ANGELES (Variety.com) – Rooster Teeth’s Western anime series “gen:Lock” has added Dakota Fanning and noted anime voice actor Kōichi Yamadera to the cast.

The duo join Michael B. Jordan , who as previously announced will voice protagonist rebel pilot Julian Chase in “.” In the series, Earth’s last free society is on the losing side of a global war and desperately seeks recruits to operate the next generation of giant, weaponized robots known as “mecha.”

Fanning (“The Alienist,” “The Twilight Saga”) will voice Miranda Worth, an expert mech pilot and Chase’s love interest. Yamadera (“Cowboy Bebop,” “Ghost in the Shell,” “Dragon Ball Super”) will voice Kazu Iida, one of the new recruits transferring from Japan’s military forces to fight alongside Chase in the gen:Lock program.

“Gen:Lock” is the second anime-style series from Animation, and will be co-produced with Jordan’s Outlier Productions. The company’s popular “RWBY” franchise, conceived by the late Monty Oum, enters its sixth season this fall. “Gen:Lock” is slated to premiere in January 2019 on Rooster Teeth’s subscription service, which starts at $4.99 per month.

Gray G. Haddock, head of Rooster Teeth Animation and the series showrunner, announced the casting of Fanning and Yamadera at L.A.’s Anime Expo.

“Dakota brings an endearing energy and texture to Miranda that the audience is going to bond with very strongly,” Haddock said in a statement. “Yamadera-san gives Kazu a fantastic balance of attitude and strength, and as anime fans we’re doing our best not to geek out that he’s joined the cast.”

Rooster Teeth’s originals lineup includes the long-running “Red vs. Blue” sci-fi spoof, which was the company’s first 3D animated series. The Austin-based company, founded in 2003, is a subsidiary of Otter Media, a joint venture of AT&T and the Chernin Group.