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The Scopedog is coming back. Mecha details have been revealed for Armored Trooper VOTOMS: The Gray Witch (Hexe), the Sunrise 50th anniversary production.
Three machines were unveiled: the Scopedog piloted by protagonist Ash, the large-scale AT known as the Rising Beetle, and the Blocker, an AT belonging to the enemy Balarant forces. New stills of Ash Vamps and Maki Stauffenberg went out alongside them, with Maki in a pilot suit shown for the first time.
Mamoru Oshii is directing. The director of GHOST IN THE SHELL is taking on a fully original new entry in a VOTOMS line that runs back to the 1983 TV series. And where the TV series was set after the end of the Hundred Years War, this one takes place in the war’s final phase.
The first film opens Friday, November 20, 2026. The second film is to be announced later. This article covers the three mecha, the staff and cast, and the diorama exhibition that opened on October 9.
Which mecha were revealed? Scopedog, Rising Beetle, and Blocker
The designs made public this time cover three machines: the Scopedog, the Rising Beetle, and the Blocker.
| Machine | Role |
|---|---|
| Scopedog | Protagonist Ash’s machine |
| Rising Beetle | Large-scale AT |
| Blocker | AT of the enemy Balarant forces |
The Scopedog showing up is a given, but the big thing is that Kunio Okawara’s name is still there on original mechanical design. The same hand has designed the ATs consistently since the TV series. That continuity is the spine of VOTOMS as a franchise.
Mechanical design is handled by Shinobu Tsuneki, Yoshihiro Sono, Juu Ishiguchi, and Wataru Inada, whose job is presumably to translate Okawara’s concepts into current animation techniques. The Rising Beetle, as a large-scale AT, should be a draw unique to this film rather than an extension of the TV series.
How does this differ from the TV series? A setting in the war’s final phase
Where the TV series was set after the end of the Hundred Years War, this film is set during the war’s final phase.
I see this as the single biggest device in the production. The 1983 TV series was about a man living in a world where the war had already ended. Because it was over, Chirico was trying to become something away from the battlefield. This film rewinds to a state where it isn’t over yet.
What gets depicted is the drama of soldiers who climb into ATs (Armored Troopers) and are treated as expendable. In the world of VOTOMS, ATs have always been handled as thoroughly cheap weapons. The premise that the humans inside them are just as cheap lands far more cruelly with the war’s final phase as the setting.
New stills of Ash Vamps and Maki Stauffenberg were also released. Maki in a pilot suit is shown here for the first time.
Who are the staff and cast? Mamoru Oshii directs, Ryosuke Takahashi supervises
Mamoru Oshii directs. The original work is credited to Hajime Yatate and Ryosuke Takahashi, with Takahashi participating as supervisor.
| Role | Credit |
|---|---|
| Original work | Hajime Yatate, Ryosuke Takahashi |
| Director and screenplay | Mamoru Oshii (screenplay co-written with Kei Yamamura) |
| Original character design | Kazuchika Kise |
| Character design | Tetsuya Nishio, Takashi Kojima, Shingo Ogiso |
| Original mechanical design | Kunio Okawara |
| Mechanical design | Shinobu Tsuneki, Yoshihiro Sono, Juu Ishiguchi, Wataru Inada |
| Music | Kenji Kawai |
| Sound director | Kazuhiro Wakabayashi |
| Planning and production | Sunrise |
| Production assistance | Production I.G |
| Distribution | Bandai Namco Filmworks |
Plenty of people will have looked at the lineup of Mamoru Oshii, Kazuchika Kise, and Kenji Kawai and immediately recognized the GHOST IN THE SHELL formation. On top of that sit Kunio Okawara’s ATs and Ryosuke Takahashi’s supervision. Two teams from different lineages are sharing one production.
On casting, Miyuki Sawashiro plays Ash Vamps and Mabuki Ando plays Maki Stauffenberg. From there the list runs: Shinichiro Miki as Alix Barrack, Yuki Kaji as Ignis Schweinsteiger, Yuichi Nakamura as Fritz Gersdorff, Satoshi Tsuruoka as Brunhardt Muller, Tomokazu Sugita as Adrian Deisler, Kenta Miyake as Matt Hummels, Chafurin as Soltig van Gunnar, Hochu Otsuka as Vid Hildebrandt, Daisuke Ono as Mateusz Julian Podolski, Takayuki Sugo as Weisweiler, Takahiro Sakurai as Oliver, and Sumire Uesaka as the girl mechanic.
The single fact that Miyuki Sawashiro is playing protagonist Ash tells you a great deal about where this film is headed. It’s a casting choice that puts a voice able to lean either boyish or girlish into the role of a soldier treated as expendable.
How long does the diorama exhibition run? Armored Trooper VOTOMS Comprehensive Model Exercise 2026
The official Sunrise diorama exhibition “Armored Trooper VOTOMS Comprehensive Model Exercise 2026” runs from Friday, October 9, 2026 through Sunday, November 8, 2026.
| Item | Details |
|---|---|
| Dates | Friday, October 9, 2026 – Sunday, November 8, 2026 |
| Venue | Kita-Senju Marui 7F “1010 PARK” (Milidis I Building, 3-92 Senju, Adachi-ku, Tokyo) |
| Hours | 10:00-19:00 (last entry 18:30; last timed-entry slot 18:00) |
| Organizers | Bandai Namco Filmworks / Any / CRAZY BUMP |
The structure puts the diorama exhibition out roughly a month ahead of the film’s release. VOTOMS is a series inseparable from model kit culture, so a funnel that starts with the models and hands you off to the movie makes sense. The run ends November 8, before the first film opens on November 20.
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Summary: what we know about The Gray Witch so far
Armored Trooper VOTOMS: The Gray Witch (Hexe) is a Sunrise 50th anniversary production and a fully original new entry in the series. The first film opens Friday, November 20, 2026, and the second film is to be announced later.
The mecha details released this time cover three machines: the Scopedog piloted by protagonist Ash, the large-scale AT Rising Beetle, and the Balarant forces’ AT, the Blocker. New stills of Ash Vamps and Maki Stauffenberg were released alongside them, with Maki in a pilot suit shown for the first time.
Mamoru Oshii directs, Ryosuke Takahashi supervises, Kunio Okawara handles original mechanical design, and Kenji Kawai scores. Planning and production is Sunrise, production assistance is Production I.G, and distribution is Bandai Namco Filmworks. Miyuki Sawashiro voices Ash and Mabuki Ando voices Maki. Where the TV series took place after the end of the Hundred Years War, this film is set in the war’s final phase and depicts the drama of soldiers who ride ATs and are treated as expendable. The diorama exhibition is running at Kita-Senju Marui through Sunday, November 8.
Rewinding the setting to the war’s final phase is the smartest decision in this project. Precisely because the TV series was a story about the aftermath, there is real meaning in handing the “not over yet” side to Mamoru Oshii. The way two different lineages intersect here, with Kunio Okawara’s ATs riding in the same production as the GHOST IN THE SHELL formation, is fascinating in itself. We’re only at the stage of three mecha reveals, but the Rising Beetle as a large-scale AT should be a draw unique to this film.
If I get to take a Scopedog roller dash through a theater sound system, that alone pays for the ticket.
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