| Devil May Cry | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Promotional poster | |
| Genre | |
| Created by | Adi Shankar |
| Based on | Devil May Cry byCapcom |
| Developed by |
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| Teleplay by | Alex Larsen |
| Voices of | |
| Opening theme | "Rollin'", performed byLimp Bizkit |
| Composers |
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| Country of origin |
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| Original language | English |
| No. of seasons | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 8 |
| Production | |
| Executive producers |
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| Editors |
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| Running time | 21–32 minutes |
| Production companies | |
| Original release | |
| Network | Netflix |
| Release | April 3, 2025 (2025-04-03) – present |
Devil May Cry is anadult animatedurban fantasyaction television series created byAdi Shankar and produced byStudio Mir. Based onthe Japanese video game franchise of the same name byCapcom, the series follows thedemon hunter for-hireDante as he attempts to foil a demonic invasion of Earth orchestrated by theWhite Rabbit while also coming into conflict with human soldierMary Ann Arkham.
The first season premiered on April 3, 2025, onNetflix.[1] One week after the first season's release, the series was renewed for a second season,[2] which is due to premiere on May 12, 2026.[3] The series has received generally positive reviews from critics.
While being hunted by thegovernment organization Dark Realm Command (DARKCOM) under Vice President William Baines,Dante, a half-demondemon hunter for-hire, comes into conflict with a demon-obsessed terrorist called theWhite Rabbit who seeks revenge on the human race.
| No. | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original release date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Inferno" | Kim Sun-min | Story by :Adi Shankar andAlex Larsen Teleplay by : Alex Larsen | April 3, 2025 (2025-04-03) | |
TheWhite Rabbit, a demonic terrorist, orchestrates a break-in at theVatican Museums and steals Force Edge, a sword once owned by the legendary demon Sparda, who turned against his own kind and created a magical barrier between Hell and Earth. The Rabbit massacres the men he hired before blowing up the building, and announces his plan to destroy the barrier between realms and usher in the apocalypse. In the wake of the attack, the U.S. government consults with Dr. Fisher, a scientist working for the interdimensional security firm DARKCOM, which is funded by Vice President William Baines. After Fisher theorizes that the Rabbit is searching for a demon hunter, DARKCOM captures and interrogates the information broker Enzo Ferino, who informs them that the Rabbit is searching for the hunterDante. Baines and Fisher then deduce that the Rabbit needs to combine the Forge Edge with Sparda's magical amulet, which he split into two halves. Meanwhile, Dante faces off againstPlasma, a shapeshifting demon who, despite taking multiple different forms, including Dante's deceased twin brotherVergil, is unsuccessful in stealing Dante's half of the amulet. | |||||
| 2 | "Our Lady of Sorrows" | Han Seung-woo | Story by : Adi Shankar and Alex Larsen Teleplay by : Alex Larsen | April 3, 2025 (2025-04-03) | |
Baines hires dozens of mercenaries to track down Dante and procure the amulet, overseen by anelite team of DARKCOM agents led by LieutenantMary Ann Arkham, who recognizes one of the mercenaries as a demon in disguise and promptly kills it. Anders, the only survivor of DARKCOM's attempt to capture the White Rabbit, is also recruited to Mary's team. Baines forces Enzo to draw Dante out, but Dante sees through him and refuses to give up the amulet because it was given to him by his deceased mother. He then lays a trap and effortlessly takes out multiple waves of mercenaries before engaging Mary (whom he nicknames "Lady") in combat. During their fight, Mary theorizes that Dante is ahuman-demon hybrid due to his inhuman physical prowess and healing capabilities, which he denies. She steals the amulet and mocks Dante for being unaware of his true nature. Dante attempts to stop Mary from escaping, but she manages to subdue him and implants a bomb in Dante's neck. Mary and her team then prepare to transport Dante and Enzo to their headquarters for questioning. | |||||
| 3 | "The Deep and Savage Way" | Park So-young | Story by : Adi Shankar and Alex Larsen Teleplay by : Alex Larsen | April 3, 2025 (2025-04-03) | |
In a flashback, Mary and her parents narrowly survive a demon attack. Mary's father becomes a pariah when he tries to alert the authorities, who believe he has gone insane. In the present, Baines interrogates Dante and tells him that, despite his demonic nature, Dante can redeem himself before God by working for the government, though Dante maintains that his unnatural abilities are due to a mutation. The White Rabbit and his enforcers:Cavaliere,Echidna, Plasma,Agni & Rudra, ambush DARKCOM's convoy and engage Mary's team. Anders is revealed as a double agent after the Rabbit previously threatened his family, and willingly gives him Dante's amulet. The Rabbit combines it with his half of the amulet, but Fisher realizes that he still requires another component before the barrier between realms can be destroyed. The Rabbit then kills Fisher, wounds Anders, and takes Enzo hostage. Dante breaks free from his containment and pursues the Rabbit, but is almost killed when the bomb implanted in his neck explodes. The Rabbit then refers to Dante as Sparda's son and takes him captive. Meanwhile, in the aftermath of the battle, Plasma takes the form of a DARKCOM agent. | |||||
| 4 | "All Hope Abandon" | Han Seung-woo | Story by : Adi Shankar and Alex Larsen Teleplay by : Alex Larsen | April 3, 2025 (2025-04-03) | |
After Mary's team is infiltrated by Plasma, they follow a tracker to the White Rabbit's location at an abandoned apartment complex. However, the Rabbit lures them into a trap, where Cavaliere and Echidna slaughter all the agents, leaving a traumatized Mary as the only survivor. She evades Cavaliere by relying on the help of a family living in the building, but turns her gun on them when she realizes they are demons. The family informs Mary that they fled Hell among other demon refugees with the Rabbit's help, but he later went mad and began experimenting on them. Reconsidering her black and white stance on demons, Mary spares the family and leaves. Dante and Enzo find themselves held captive by Agni and Rudra on Baines' hijacked plane. Baines remains confident that God has bigger plans for him, though the other hostages remain terrified. Dante continues to doubt that Sparda is his father, while the Rabbit decries his legacy for betraying demonkind. Dante activates his demon abilities after remembering his traumatic childhood and kills Agni, causing an enraged Rudra to blow up the plane in response. | |||||
| 5 | "Descent" | Park So-young | Story by : Adi Shankar and Alex Larsen Teleplay by : Alex Larsen | April 3, 2025 (2025-04-03) | |
Mary discovers a laboratory where the White Rabbit had been conducting his experiments. She reunites with the disguised Plasma but realizes his identity when he refers to Hell by its demon name "Makai". Echidna then ambushes them and accidentally attacks the disguised Plasma, allowing Mary to kill Echidna. When DARKCOM reinforcements arrive, Mary delivers a speech telling them to evacuate the demon refugees. Dante uses his newfound abilities to transform into a winged demonic form and saves Enzo, Baines, and the other hostages. He then continues his fight with Rudra, who is killed by Mary when they crash into the Rabbit's hideout. Dante confesses that she was right about his demonic heritage, and Mary determines that the Rabbit needs Dante's blood to fulfill his plan. The Rabbit then threatens to unleash his army of demons if Dante does not surrender, and Mary discovers that the Rabbit's true goal is to seek revenge against DARKCOM. When Baines learns that his agents are rescuing the demon refugees, he instead orders them all killed, as Plasma watches on in horror. Plasma then commits suicide by blowing up the building, killing all the agents inside, as Dante and Mary narrowly escape the blast. | |||||
| 6 | "The First Circle" | Hong Jee-young | Story by : Adi Shankar and Alex Larsen Teleplay by : Alex Larsen | April 3, 2025 (2025-04-03) | |
In a series of flashbacks, a young Mary becomes increasingly distant from her parents while her father becomes obsessed with his research to prove that demons exist. She spends time away from home, only to return and witness her father transform himself into a demon and kill her mother. Mary defends herself, and her father catches fire, causing him to burn to death as their house goes up in flames. Elsewhere, an orphaned boy is moved into a foster home but is routinely bullied and neglected. While reading his copy ofAlice's Adventures in Wonderland, he discovers a portal and heads inside, believing it to beWonderland. The boy arrives in Hell and quickly befriends a group of lower-class demons living in fear. After finding a glowing crystal, he starts experimenting with it, but one of his friends becomes ill due to the poor environmental conditions and dies. Many years later, the boy uses the crystal to power a portal device and starts transporting demon refugees to Earth. Mary and her team soon discover the operation and kill many of the refugees. Having survived, the boy makes plans to dismantle DARKCOM before stitching aWhite Rabbit mask to his face. | |||||
| 7 | "At the Gates of Paradise" | Han Seung-woo | Story by : Adi Shankar and Alex Larsen Teleplay by : Alex Larsen | April 3, 2025 (2025-04-03) | |
The White Rabbit meets with a horned demon, who previously gave the Rabbit Vergil's half of the amulet, and receives a vial of Vergil's blood. Seeking vengeance, Mary locks up Dante, confronts the Rabbit alone, and threatens to incinerate Dante to prevent the Rabbit from getting his blood. When the Rabbit calls Mary's bluff, she engages his army, but is paralyzed by their poison-coated weapons. Dante saves her, and the Rabbit gives Dante a glimpse of Hell and its unbearable living conditions before elaborating that he is willing to allow millions of humans to die to save demonkind. Dante refuses to bargain with the Rabbit, defeats his demon army, and duels Cavaliere. The Rabbit unmasks himself, revealing to Mary how her actions led to his creation and that he uses an artificial heart that pumps demon blood into him to stay alive. Dante decapitates Cavaliere and swiftly defeats the Rabbit, who warns Dante that he could have prevented what is to come before leaving Dante with the amulet. Enzo and Baines arrive to witness the aftermath, with Baines declaring the battle as the first of their holy war against Hell. | |||||
| 8 | "A River of Blood and Fire" | Park So-young | Story by : Adi Shankar and Alex Larsen Teleplay by : Alex Larsen | April 3, 2025 (2025-04-03) | |
An injured White Rabbit consumes a surviving demon, causing him to mutate. Anders recovers the Rabbit's portal device, and Baines confronts Mary about her working alongside Dante. The mutated Rabbit, having fused with Force Edge, then massacres Baines' men before engaging Dante and Mary. Enzo comes out of hiding to help, but is stabbed by the Rabbit and dies in Dante's arms. The Rabbit then retrieves the amulet and combines it with Force Edge before impaling Dante with it, creating the Sword of Sparda, and reveals that Vergil is still alive. His plan complete, the barrier between realms dissipates, and demons begin invading Earth. Mary shoots the Rabbit's artificial heart, weakening him, allowing Dante to kill the Rabbit with the Sword of Sparda and repair the barrier, ending the invasion. Dante invites Mary to help search for Vergil, but she subdues him and has him imprisoned. Anders brings the portal device to Baines, who has Anders killed and uses the device to begin the invasion of Hell. Sometime later, the horned demon invades the detention facility built by theUroboros Corporation and frees its demon occupants to serveMundus, the ruler of Hell, and reveals himself to be Vergil. | |||||
In late 2018,Adi Shankar announced to produce the TV series adaptation ofCapcom'sDevil May Cry forNetflix.[7][8]Alex Larsen was hired as a writer for the series[9][10] which consists of eight episodes.[11][12][13]
In September 2023, the first-look teaser was released during Netflix's Drop 01 livestream.[14] Shortly after,Dante's long-time English voice actor,Reuben Langdon, revealed that he was not asked to reprise his role.[15] As a self-proclaimed fan of the series, Adi Shankar said he cosplayed in response to the game, which attracted the company in charge of the games. Shankar brought parallels betweenDevil May Cry and the comic bookIron Man in terms of popularity and wanted to give it a revision inspired byChristopher Nolan'sDark Knight trilogy.[16] According to Shankar, the series is considered to be part of a shared "Bootleg Multiverse", alongsideCastlevania,Castlevania: Nocturne, andCaptain Laserhawk: A Blood Dragon Remix.[17]
On April 10, 2025, the series was renewed for a second season.[2]
In September 2024, it was announced thatJohnny Yong Bosch would be taking on the role of Dante.[4] Bosch would later mention on a social media post that Langdon, Dante's original voice actor, had quit acting and that Shankar had written Dante with him in mind for the role.[18] On March 11, 2025, a trailer with additional cast members was revealed with one of them beingKevin Conroy in a posthumous role as William Baines following his death in November 2022.[5] As Conroy had not finished recording all of his dialogue prior to his death,Ian James Corlett was brought in midway through production to take over the role of Baines.[19] In 2023,Tony Todd was cast in an undisclosed role.[20]
By September 2023, a first-lookteaser trailer was released along with the news thatStudio Mir fromSouth Korea would be producing and animating the series.[14][21] A second teaser trailer was released on September 19, 2024.[22] In January 2025, the intro sequence, which featured the song "Rollin'" byLimp Bizkit, for the series was unveiled. The first season premiered on April 3, 2025.[1] The second season is due to premiere on May 12, 2026.[3][23]
On thereview aggregator websiteRotten Tomatoes, the series holds an approval rating of 96%, based on 25 reviews with an average score of 7.9/10.[24] The website's critical consensus reads, "Honoring its source material's flair for the bombastic,Devil May Cry slices and dices its way into the animation medium and makes a bloody memorable first impression."Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned a score of 77 out of 100 based on 7 critic reviews, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.[25]
Aidan Kelley ofCollider gave the series a score of 9 out of 10. He dubbed the series "one of the best new animated shows of 2025", comparing it favourably to Shankar's previous work onCastlevania and that it "goes above and beyond to deliver a brilliant animated series that is as thematically rich as it is wildly entertaining."[26] Daniel Kurland ofBloody Disgusting gave the series a score of 4 out of 5. He praised the action sequences and wrote, "There's strong enough artistry behind the action and battle choreography that makes this adaptation a sheer delight." Kurland then commented on the art style by stating, "There are some really creative art direction and stylistic choices that make the series a visual triumph."[27] Kambole Campbell ofThe A.V. Club gave the series a rating of B−. He noted that "Shankar's spin onDevil May Cry is mostly a fun love letter to the qualities that made it popular" and praised the soundtrack, specifically mentioning its licensed music and an original song from the rock bandEvanescence that plays during the sixth episode, which he described as the "show's best episode."[28] Rendy Jones ofRogerEbert.com similarly praised the episode and wrote that "Everything pays off in the sixth episode, a chapter guided by silent visual storytelling that incorporates various animation styles and some aptly fitting needle drops. It is one of the year's best TV episodes to date, a bold move that proves why these studios hire Shankar for their adaptations."[29]
Rafael Motamayor ofIGN gave the series a score of 8 out of 10. He concluded his review by stating, "Adi Shankar and Studio Mir craft a fun video-game adaptation that doubles as a deranged, bonkers, and bold homage to and indictment of '00s Americana. If nothing else, it contains some of the best animation you're likely to see this year."[30] Brett Cardaro ofCBR gave the series a score of 8 out of 10. He commended the performance of the voice cast, stating thatDante's voice actorJohnny Yong Bosch "is actually the perfect person to play him in the anime" whose "cocky one-liners are often as genuinely entertaining as they are in the games" and that the White Rabbit's voice actorHoon Lee gave a "standout performance" and was a "surprisingly amazing character." However, Cardaro was critical of the use of CGI animation and noted that "The action is mostly great, but one way it's held back is by the appearances of some of the demons created using CGI. The fight choreography is consistently solid, but the CGI models just don't do it justice."[31] Isaiah Colbert ofio9 criticized the depiction ofMary, or "Lady", but praised voice actressScout Taylor-Compton for her performance and wrote "There's a lot to love about Lady, which is why its so disappointing to witness any sense of poignancy of her quieter contemplative moments or badassery being upended by her cursing so god damn often."[32]
Joshua Fox ofScreen Rant was more critical of the series from the declared perspective of aDevil May Cry fan. He commented on the quality of the writing, stating that "my issues withDevil May Cry's writing are compounded by what became the biggest sticking point: the political elements" before elaborating on how the series' commentary on thewar on terror was "completely out of place" for the franchise. Fox also noted that the series "doesn't work because of how poorly it portrays old and new characters alike", specifically mentioning how Dante and Mary compare unfavourably to their video game counterparts.[33] David Opie ofGamesRadar+ in contrast was critical of the series for being too devoted to the games. Opie rated the series 2.5 out of 5, stating that though the series was able to capture the spirit of the games, "there's little depth beyond that" and that the greatest issue was that the show was "very much stuck in the past, rather than paying homage to it", failing to update the series for modern audiences. Opie was similarly dissatisfied by the series undermining its more positive moments through lacklustre presentation, claiming "it feels likeDevil May Cry is trying to convince you of Dante's coolness, rather than simply showing it" and found the action to be a "run-of-the-mill scrimmage" when compared to the choreography ofCastlevania.[34] Evie Rivas ofIn Between Drafts claimed the show is antithetical to the source material, stating it "possesses a nihilistic need to strip the identity of the franchise in favor of a cynical reconstruction" and that "a thick layer of cynicism covers all traces of heart. Irony consumes all sincerity. Adi Shankar’s anime adaptation seems to be trying to philosophically murder Devil May Cry." The character of Mary was labelled shows the greatest issue with Rivas criticizing her excessive narrative importance and unlikability, describing her as "a theocratic Nazi that eventually builds a concentration camp" while claiming that Shankar's exploration of politics was "in extremely poor taste."[35] Louis Kemner ofCBR listed the series among the most disappointing anime of the 2020's, stating that though it "delivered the goods with moments of good animation and solid characterization" it was overshadowed by low quality animation and CGI and how it "deviated from the source material enough to not feel like a true adaptation of the games."[36]
With the announcement in June 2025 ofDevil May Cry 5 exceeding 10 million sales and a report from Capcom in September 2025 revealing that the game was the company's best selling game between the period of March to September, many attributed the boosted sales and success over more recent games such asMonster Hunter Wilds as a result of the Netflix show bringing additional attention to the series.[37][38] In April 2025 Brett Cardaro ofCBR claimed in regards to the initial boost in sales "whether fans liked the anime or not, there’s no denying that it had a positive impact on the franchise’s popularity."[39] Lincoln Carpenter ofPC Gamer similarly attributed the boost in sales to the show, though noted that the frequent discounts for the games onSteam were likely another contributing factor.[40]
| Year | Award | Category | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Annecy International Animation Film Festival | Best TV Production | Nominated | [41] |
| Hollywood Music in Media Awards | Best Original Song in a TV Show/Limited Series ("Afterlife" byEvanescence) | Nominated | [42][43] | |
| The Game Awards | Best Adaptation | Nominated | [44][45] | |
| 2026 | Annie Awards | Outstanding Achievement for Music in an Animated Television/Broadcast Production Power Golve,Alex Seaver (for "The First Circle") | Pending | [46][47] |
Johnny Yong Bosch, the voice actor behind Nero in theDevil May Cry video games, voices Dante in the animated series.
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