Amazon Japan revealed on Tuesday that it will stream a spinoff of the Ultraman Orb television series in late December through its Amazon Prime instant video service. The announcement does not reveal whether the spinoff will also be a series, or a special.

The main Ultraman Orb television series itself will premiere on TV Tokyo on July 9 at 9:00 a.m.

Hideo Ishiguro (live-action Gokusen's Kengo Honjo) is playing the main character Gai Kurenai (seen below). Gai uses a round transformation item to borrow the powers of previous Ultraman characters and transform into a new form.

Kiyotaka Taguchi, who directed last year's Ultraman X series, will once again direct Ultraman Orb . The director stated that the series will have "themes of traveling the noble path and returning to one's roots, while still being a funny and interesting Ultraman series."

The long-running Ultraman series is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year. Last year's Ultraman X debuted in July and ended in December. Tsuburaya Productions Co., Ltd. then streamed an Ultra Series teaser video in January as part of a project that marks the 50th anniversary of the Ultra Series . The Ultra Series began on January 2, 1966 with Ultra Q . The teaser ended with the words "What's Next…?"

Fields Corporation, the parent company of Tsuburaya Productions Co., Ltd., had revealed in a financial presentation in February that a new Ultraman series would premiere in July. The report noted that the Ultraman X series has received approximately 400 million views for its overseas simulcast. The Ultraman X television series debuted in Japan last July, and Crunchyroll streamed the series as it aired.

The Gekijō-ban Ultraman X Kita Zo! Warera no Ultraman (Ultraman X the Movie: He Came! Our Ultraman) film premiered in Japan on March 12.