Devil May Cry producer hopes new Netflix anime inspired by Christopher Nolan’s Batman trilogy will show fans that "the villain of your story is the hero of their own story"

Devil May Cry
(Image credit: Netflix)

Devil May Cry producer Adi Shankar has shared his hopes for the new Netflix anime and what viewers might get out of it, whether they're long-time fans or newcomers to the franchise.

"The same thing for both – unity, harmony," Shankar tells 12DOVE in a new interview.

"You know, it’s really just an understanding that we are, as adults, attempting to reclaim what it is that we lost as children. And realize that we’re all doing that. All whatever billion of us on the planet – we’re all doing that, we’re all attempting to regain what we lost as children, and some of us are more conscious of it than others," he continues.

"But this is something that should bring us together as a species. Like, we’re all going through this same thing. It’s just, you know, treat each other with kindness. Because the villain of your story is the hero of their own story."

Based on the video game franchise of the same name, Devil May Cry follows Dante (voiced by Johnny Yong Bosch), a demon hunter for hire, who's up against the powerful White Rabbit and his attempt to invade Earth. The first Devil May Cry game was released back in 2001, and multiple sequels have followed since. The anime's voice cast includes a posthumous appearance from Kevin Conroy.

And Conroy isn't the show's only link to the Dark Knight, either. "[The show] was inspired by Christopher Nolan's Batman trilogy, because it's Batman – it's the Batman you know, [Nolan] didn't, like, make any wild changes or anything," Shankar told 12DOVE. "But he's setting it in the real world, right? It's not in this, like, Tim Burton world. It's not in this Joel Schumacher world. It's not in a cartoon world. It's in the real world."

Devil May Cry arrives on Netflix on April 3. In the meantime, fill out your watchlist with our picks of the best Netflix shows streaming now, or the other best new anime still to come in 2025.

Entertainment Writer

I’m an Entertainment Writer here at 12DOVE, covering everything film and TV-related across the Total Film and SFX sections. I help bring you all the latest news and also the occasional feature too. I’ve previously written for publications like HuffPost and i-D after getting my NCTJ Diploma in Multimedia Journalism. 

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