Nearly two decades after Gurren Lagann sent a drill-powered robot crashing through the heavens, the creative minds behind that explosive classic are ready to shake up anime again. TRIGGER has officially announced a fourth original anime collaboration between director Hiroyuki Imaishi and writer Kazuki Nakashima, the duo responsible for Gurren Lagann, Kill la Kill, and Promare.
【今石監督 最新作📢】最強タッグが、再び動き出す🔥2007『天元突破グレンラガン』2013『キルラキル』2019『プロメア』そして…監督：今石洋之 × 脚本：中島かずき第4弾作品、始動‼️続報にご期待下さい pic.twitter.com/0Q2GH5SOUr— TRIGGER Inc. (@trigger_inc) July 5, 2026
Gurren Lagann premiered in 2007, while its manga adaptation also began that year, making the timing of this reunion feel particularly significant. But this isn’t a comeback after 19 years of silence. Imaishi and Nakashima have continued creating separately and together; rather, this marks their first joint project since 2019’s Promare.
Hiroyuki Imaishi and Kazuki Nakashima Are Back for Another Original Anime
TRIGGER revealed the news during Anime Expo 2026, announcing that Imaishi and Nakashima are developing their fourth original anime project together. The studio’s announcement specifically traces their partnership through Gurren Lagann (2007), Kill la Kill (2013), and Promare (2019), before unveiling the mysterious fourth project.
Imaishi will return as director, while Nakashima handles the script. Most importantly, this is an original anime, meaning viewers aren’t waiting for another manga or novel adaptation to reach the screen. TRIGGER also released a teaser visual featuring a huge, mysterious silhouette resembling an artificial machine.
That is enough to make Gurren Lagann fans start connecting dots, but that’s where the confirmed information ends. The studio has not revealed the title, plot, characters, cast, release date, format, or distribution details.
So, yes, it may look like a giant robot. No, we don’t know what it is yet. Your wild theories are officially your own. What makes the announcement especially exciting is that Imaishi and Nakashima have repeatedly used original animation to build worlds that could not easily be mistaken for anything else. Their reunion isn’t simply a nostalgia trip. It is another opportunity for the pair to create something completely new.
Gurren Lagann and Kill la Kill Duo Could Deliver Their Next Banger
Simon the Digger from Gurren Lagann. [Credit: Gainax]
The Imaishi-Nakashima combination has a very specific kind of creative chemistry: take an outrageous concept, turn the volume all the way up, and somehow make the emotional stakes hit just as hard as the action. Gurren Lagann (one of the best 21st century anime of all time) established that formula with escalating mecha battles, larger-than-life personalities, emotional drama, and its unforgettable drill imagery.
The 2007 series became acclaimed internationally and even received an Excellence Award from the Japan Media Arts Festival.
12 years ago, ‘KILL LA KILL’ officially ended with “Goodbye again”!12 years later, the creative duo of Imaishi and Nakashima are teaming up once again for a new TRIGGER anime! pic.twitter.com/Zzri1v84hF— Anime Updates (@animeupdates) September 2, 2026
Then came Kill la Kill, which proved the pair didn’t need giant robots to create chaos. Its deliberately absurd premise became a wildly kinetic action series built around identity, rebellion, and spectacle. The series was also an entirely original anime, further establishing the duo’s willingness to create stories outside existing franchises. And Promare took that partnership onto the big screen in 2019, showing that their combustible style could work just as effectively as a theatrical feature.
That’s why this fourth project matters. Fans aren’t merely getting another familiar reunion. They’re getting another blank canvas from two creators who have already demonstrated that original anime can be loud, strange, emotional, ambitious and unmistakably theirs. For now, TRIGGER is keeping the biggest secrets locked away. But after three collaborations like these, the question isn’t whether fans are curious. It’s how loudly they’re going to rejoice when that first real trailer arrives.
Do you think this new Imaishi-Nakashima project can live up to the hype? Tell us your wildest theories below!
Fans can watch Gurren Lagann in the USA on Crunchyroll, Netflix, and Hulu.
Fans can watch Kill la Kill in the USA on Crunchyroll, Disney+, and Hulu.
This post belongs to FandomWire and first appeared on FandomWire
