Well this is an interesting development.

As spotted over on the IXFILM Group website, it seems that Piranha franchise rights holder/producer Hisako Tsukaba is currently prepping a new series installment titled Summer of the Piranha (alternatively titled Piranha JPN) over in her home country of Japan, which is said to be in pre-production right now for a planned 2018 release.

We don’t yet have any other details about the project, other than to say it will be the sixth installment in the franchise. The original Piranha, released in 1978, was directed by Joe Dante, and it was followed up with James Cameron’s Piranha 2: The Spawning in 1981 and a made-for-TV remake in 1995. The original was then remade in the form of Piranha 3D in 2010, which itself spawned sequel Piranha 3DD in 2012. Another installment of the remake series was planned at one point, but it seems that project has been dead in the water for quite some time.

While we wait for more info, check out some early Summer of the Piranha concept art below.