Netflix's new Japanese sci-fi thriller Human Vapor has proven a hit with audiences, racking up 24.3 million hours viewed and landing in the platform's Global Top 10 Non-English TV rankings shortly after its debut. The eight-episode series, which premiered on 2 July, reimagines a little-known 1960 Toho cult classic, blending crime drama, political conspiracy, body horror and science fiction rather than offering a straightforward remake. Its success underlines Netflix's continued reliance on international genre productions to drive engagement, alongside its Hollywood output.

The show follows detective Kenji Okamoto (Shun Oguri) and reporter Kyoko Kono (Yû Aoi) as they investigate a string of deaths caused by a mysterious gas-transforming killer known as the Human Vapor, whose attacks are linked to a shadowy organisation called the White Center and a decades-old cover-up involving politicians, organised crime and law enforcement. Written by Yeon Sang-ho (Train to Busan, Hellbound) and Ryu Yong-jae, the series keeps the supernatural premise of Ishirō Honda's 1960 original but builds an entirely new mythology around institutional corruption and abuse of power. It also marks the first collaboration between Netflix and Toho, the Japanese studio best known for Godzilla, modernising one of its lesser-known properties while retaining its tokusatsu roots.