Nearly five years after Ubisoft Film & Television revealed in July 2020 that it was developing a Netflix animated series based on Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell, the project has finally dropped its first official trailer.
The full trailer premiered at AnimeNYC, where Netflix has also debuted previews for several other high-profile animated titles, including the continuation of Blue Eye Samurai and season two of Devil May Cry.
Michael Ironside, the original voice of Sam Fisher, has voiced his support for Liev Schreiber stepping into the role for the series, noting that he now considers himself too old to reprise the character. Based on the brief teaser, it certainly seems as if Schreiber was a solid pick.
Animation duties are handled by Sun Creature Studio, best known for projects like the Midnight Suns intro cinematic and Flee, with additional work from French studio Fost, whose credits include The Summit of the Gods and Wolfwalkers.
Splinter Cell: Deathwatch will officially premiere on Netflix on October 14.
Infiltrating the shadows, the Splinter Cell series has brought players six core stealth-action adventures. Beginning with the 2002 original that introduced Sam Fisher and the covert agency Third Echelon, the franchise grew through acclaimed installments like Chaos Theory and Conviction. The journey concluded, at least for now, with 2013’s Blacklist, where a new development team guided Fisher through his most recent mission.
Ubisoft revealed in December 2021 that a remake of the 2002 Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell was in the works. However, the project faced a shift in October 2022 when game director David Grivel departed the company. While no replacement has been officially announced, development remains underway at Ubisoft Toronto under the guidance of Creative Director Chris Auty and his team.
From the creator of the "John Wick" franchise comes Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell: Deathwatch, a new animated series from Netflix and Ubisoft, inspired by the iconic video game franchise. From writer and producer Derek Kolstad (The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, John Wick, Nobody), comes the first-ever adaptation of the acclaimed stealth video game franchise, Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell. After a long absence from the field, legendary agent Sam Fisher (Liev Schreiber) is drawn back into action when a wounded young operative (Kirby Howell-Baptiste) seeks his help. Only on Netflix on October 14th.