The world of Pokemon comes alive next year in Pokemon: Detective Pikachu. The live-action and animation hybrid film sees Justice Smith being paired up with a wise-cracking Pikachu (voiced by Ryan Reynolds), who wears a detective hat and solves mysteries in a city where humans and Pokemon co-exist.

Now, Warner Bros. has released the first look at the film by releasing an official trailer for the film. Check it out below, along with a new poster.

It’s been over 20 years since the first Pokemon game took the world by storm. The global phenomenon has gone on to air a long-running anime, release multiple movies, and, of course, there are the games, which not only consist of video games but card games as well. But Pokemon: Detective Pikachu is the first Pokemon movie of its kind to see live-action humans interact with Pokemon.

While the concept of it all may seem silly, basing the film on a spinoff makes sense. Normally, these games follow a protagonist who goes on a journey across a large region to fight other trainers and collect all of the Pokemon. However, that doesn’t necessarily lend itself to being a good film. So instead, a spinoff of the game with familiar characters works. We get a far more focused story that doesn’t require the same repetitive Pokemon battles and learning and growing on the journey story.

Then there is Detective Pikachu himself, who seems to be the only one who can communicate with Tim (Smith). The watered-down wise cracks seem like Reynolds is channeling a more child-like version of Deadpool, only with a less-developed profane vocabulary.

Here’s the official plot synopsis:

The story begins when ace private eye Harry Goodman goes mysteriously missing, prompting his 21-year-old son Tim to find out what happened. Aiding in the investigation is Harry’s former Pokémon partner, Detective Pikachu: a hilariously wise-cracking, adorable super-sleuth who is a puzzlement even to himself. Finding that they are uniquely equipped to communicate with one another, Tim and Pikachu join forces on a thrilling adventure to unravel the tangled mystery. Chasing clues together through the neon-lit streets of Ryme City””a sprawling, modern metropolis where humans and Pokémon live side by side in a hyper-realistic live-action world””they encounter a diverse cast of Pokémon characters and uncover a shocking plot that could destroy this peaceful co-existence and threaten the whole Pokémon universe.

The film also Kathryn Newton and Ken Watanabe in live-action roles.

Directed by Rob Letterman and written by Nicole Perlman and Letterman, Pokemon: Detective Pikachu opens in theaters on May 10, 2019.

Trailer

Poster

[Source: Warner Bros. YT]