Robin Williams 'Evangelion' Connection Has San Francisco Roots

The news that Neon Genesis: Evangelion is coming to Netflix next spring has whipped anime Twitter into a frenzy. Longtime fans are squeeing with joy at the prospect of unfettered streaming access to both the series and its companion films End of Evangelion and Death (True)2. The series has been difficult to find in the U.S., particularly as DVDs have fallen out of fashion. However, the renewed interest in Hideaki Anno's legendary anime series has served a reminder to us all that the late, great Robin Williams was an unabashed weeb who paid tribute to Evangelion in one of his most popular films.

In the Robin Williams' thriller One Hour Photo, a Neon Genesis: Evangelion figure (of a mass-production Eva series) serves as a prominent symbol in the plot surrounding Williams' character Seymour and his ongoing obsession with a family who patronizes his photo lab. In this brief scene, Williams learns about the figure from Jakob, the young child of Williams' victims Nina and Will Yorkin:

Seymour later tries to gift the figure to Jakob, who uncomfortably declines the gesture because "my parents won't let me." It serves as a catalyst for Seymour's descent into madness, inspiring him to believe in righteous violence as the only solution.

The inclusion of the Neon Genesis: Evangelion figure in One Hour Photo was long-believed to be a creative contribution made by Williams himself. The story began with Matt Greenfield, a producer/director who worked on the anime's English-language translation:

"That's not in the original script. Robin Williams added that," Greenfield said at an anime convention in Pittsburgh in 2006.

However, the truth is that One Hour Photo writer/director Matt Romanek picked the figure more or less at random. He told Eva Monkey (in a great YouTube explainer ) that Williams had nothing to do with it.

"I was searching for a toy that would play later in the film as a spur to Robin's character to take action and I came across it. Robin was not involved in that decision," Romanek told Eva Monkey via email.

Williams' clout as an anime fan is rooted in one of the internet's leading sources of clout: Reddit. During an AMA in 2013, Williams confirmed he loved Evangelion as well as a host of other classics such as Ghost in the Shell and Akira . When a fan asked him if he'd ever play Gendo Ikari from Evangelion, he declined, but opened up about which characters he'd love to play and how he got his start as an anime fan in the '90s:

No, if they ever make Ghost In the Shell I forget the name of the old man character but that would be a wonderful part to play.

How I got started? There was a shop in San Francisco that sold laserdisks - that's how far back it goes - and then later on I found a wonderful bookstore in San Francisco called Green Apple that would sell DVDS of Anime shows.

The old man in question is Chief Aramaki. Williams' response inspired redditor metametamind to whip up this memetastic gem:

robin williams evangelion anime chief ghost shell
Imgur // metametamind

Neon Genesis: Evangelion is set to premiere on Netflix worldwide sometime next spring.

Editor's Note: A previous version of the story claimed Williams added the Evangelion figure to One Hour Photo himself. Newsweek regrets the error.

Uncommon Knowledge

Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.

Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.

About the writer


Mo Mozuch has been covering video games, culture and tech since 2012. Formerly the editor of iDigitalTimes and, later, Player.One, ... Read more

To read how Newsweek uses AI as a newsroom tool, Click here.

Newsweek cover
  • Newsweek magazine delivered to your door
  • Newsweek Voices: Diverse audio opinions
  • Enjoy ad-free browsing on Newsweek.com
  • Comment on articles
  • Newsweek app updates on-the-go
Newsweek cover
  • Newsweek Voices: Diverse audio opinions
  • Enjoy ad-free browsing on Newsweek.com
  • Comment on articles
  • Newsweek app updates on-the-go