Legendary Western Icon Gets Ambitious Sci-Fi Makeover in New Netflix Series

1 day ago 9

Bass (Brian Tyree Henry) looking fierce in Bass X Machina

Published Jun 23, 2026, 11:30 AM EDT

A cinematic obsessive with the filmic palate of a starving raccoon, Rob London will watch pretty much anything once. With a mind like a steel trap, he's an endless fount of movie and TV trivia, borne from a misspent youth of watching monster movies on TV, perusing the sun-faded goods at the local video rental shop, and staining his fingers with ink from the Video Movie Guide. Areas of interest include science fiction, film noir, horror flicks, '70s disaster pictures, Bond movies, '90s action, giant robots, dinosaurs, super heroes, and the exuberantly schlocky output of Cannon Films. He also enjoys both Star Trek and Star Wars when they're good, and maybe even more when they're bad. As a Canadian, he also has a vested interest in Canadian movies and TV shows, especially the cheesier ones dubbed "Canuxploitation."

An expert on Marvel Comics, he has also written for the Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe, and is a member of the Marvel Research Team. He can frequently be found pontificating on comic-book continuity or bemoaning the misfortunes of the Toronto Maple Leafs on his Twitter account.

A new lawman's coming to Netflix this fall, and he's not like anything you've ever seen before. Netflix has unveiled a new look at the upcoming series Bass X Machina at the Annecy International Animation Film Festival, one of the largest animation showcases in the world. The steampunk animated series is set to premiere on the streaming service on November 3.

The series is inspired by real-life U.S. Marshal Bass Reeves, who was also the subject of the less fanciful Taylor Sheridan series Lawman: Bass Reeves with David Oyelowo. Born into slavery, Reeves was legendary for bringing in dangerous outlaws, and may have helped inspire the creation of The Lone Ranger. Bass X Machina is set in a Weird Wild West of advanced technology and supernatural menaces. Thus, we see Reeves here with a mechanical right arm, powering up with crackling energy bolts; presumably, he's facing down some sort of steampunk owlhoot. He's voiced by Brian Tyree Henry, who is also an executive producer on the series. It's the latest animation role for Henry, who starred as Megatron in Transformers One and will return for a third stint as Jeff Morales in Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse next year. He's also set to star in The Batman Part II, which is now in production.

What Do We Know About 'Bass X Machina'?

Brian Tyree Henry as the title character in Bass X Machina.

Set in a strange Wild West overrun by outlaws, advanced technology, and supernatural horrors, Bass X Machina stars Henry as Bass Reeves, the one man who can bring the law to this lawless land. To protect his family, he becomes judge, jury, and executioner, but faces the prospect of losing his family and his humanity as he struggles to avoid becoming as brutal and inhuman as the foes he faces. The series will also star Janelle Monáe (Glass Onion) as Glory, Tati Gabrielle (Mortal Kombat II) as Dana, Cree Summer (Abbott Elementary) as Ahni, Chaske Spencer (Dark Winds) as Lighthorse, Currie Graham (Reacher) as Rivenbark, and Starletta DuPois (One Battle After Another) as Etta.

In addition to Henry, Bass X Machina is executive produced by LeSean Thomas, Jennifer Wiley-Moxley, and Chad Handley. It is a production of Studio Mir, the South Korean animation studio behind series like The Legend of Korra, Voltron: Legendary Defender, X-Men '97, and My Adventures With Superman.

Bass X Machina will be released on Netflix on November 3. Stay tuned to Collider for future updates.

Read Entire Article