Netflix’s ‘Devil May Cry’ Producer Adi Shankar Reveals Capcom Rejected His Initial Animated Series Pitch: “I Wanted To Bring ‘Dino Crisis’ Back”
According to Netflix’s Devil May Cry lead producer Adi Shankar, when he first approached Capcom looking to adapt one of their IPs to the small screen, he originally hoped to be handed the keys to the fan-favorite demon hunting franchise, but rather the long-dead Dino Crisis.
Ever since the last entry launched roughly 24 years ago, fans of the dinosaur-centric survival series have long hoped that at they would someday see the return of Regina, the red-haired agent of the Secret Operation Raid Team (S.O.R.T.) and the lead protagonist of the first two games.
So much so, in fact, that when asked by a recent Capcom poll as to which game they thought should get a sequel, reboot, or remake, fans overwhelmingly picked Dino Crisis, in doing so leaving both the second-place Mega Man and third-place Devil May Cry in the dust.
Unfortunately, per Shankar, it seems Capcom is dead set on keeping Regina hostage and far away from the many who want to her make an appearance on modern hardware.
Taking to Twitter on November 8th, the mind behind Netflix’s Castlevania and Captain Laserhawk series, seemingly apropos of nothing, shared his thoughts on the mainline Dino Crisis games, praising the first two and expressing disappointment at the third.
“Dino Crisis 1 nailed the survival horror vibe, blending the tension of Resident Evil with the sheer terror of being hunted by dinosaurs—perfect,” he wrote. “Dino Crisis 2 took it up a notch with fast-paced action & incredible level design.”
“Why am I telling you this?” Shankar then asked. “Because when I first went to Capcom in 2017, my mission was clear: I wanted to bring Dino Crisis back. But in an awesome twist of fate, they sold me Devil May Cry instead! I didn’t think DMC would even be on the table.”
In response to this reveal, users on social media poured out to both lament Dino Crisis‘ continued lack of content and Shankar’s missed opportunity.
On Twitter, a fan by the handle @GenTheWitch said “I truly hope this series is revived some day. I’ve been dreaming of it for years. We need Regina back!”
Another fan of the Dino Crisis franchise, @Jawmuncher confirmed the sentiment “Bruh, Capcom really leaving Dino Crisis fans out to dry.”
“I hope you don’t give up on Dino Crisis, even after the ‘No’,” wrote @DinoCrisisFanOF, “we fans are counting on you.”
In adding insult to injury, instead of a new full-fledged Dino Crisis game or even a remaster/remake of the classics, Capcom instead treated fans to their dino-themed multiplayer shooter, Exorpimal, in July 2023.
Though it allowed players to don hi-tech mech suits to fight hordes of dinosaurs, the fact that it was a brand new IP that didn’t even make mention of Regina (though the character of Majesty, a red-haired female soldier who name is related to the concept of royalty), turned many players off of the game only deepened fans’ frustration – which in turn led to Exoprimal‘s extinction just a year after release.
Dino Crisis as a franchise remains tragically underrated – and sadly, with Shankar’s dream of being allowed to adapt it having been rejected by Capcom, it only stands to slip further into obscurity.
However, not everything is lost for the cult classic franchise, as while Shankar is fully committed to Devil May Cry, he is not giving up on bringing Regina to the small screen.
In a follow-up tweet, the producer asserted, “Don’t worry, my DMC show is awesome and I have a very long-term plan for it. I am committed. But yes, one day perhaps I usually use my powers to resurrect Dino Crisis.
With that said, Shankar’s Devil May Cry anime will land on Netflix in April 2025, with Johnny Yong Bosch – who fans of the video games might recognize as the voice of Dante’s nephew Nero – set to provide the voice of the series’ silver-haired protagonist.
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