# Gen:Lock
**Gen:Lock** (stylized **gen:LOCK**) is an American computer-animated science fiction mecha streaming television series created by Gray Haddock and produced by [Rooster Teeth](https://www.edgepedia.org/rooster-teeth), the Austin-based studio behind *Red vs. Blue* and *RWBY*.[1](https://genlock.fandom.com/wiki/Gen%3ALOCK) • [2](https://www.syfy.com/syfy-wire/genlock-rooster-teeth-gray-haddock-sci-fi-anime-michael-b-jordan) Set fifty years in the future during a technologically driven world war, it follows a team of young pilots recruited by Earth's last free society, the Polity, to control next-generation mecha by uploading their minds into giant robotic bodies called Holons.[3](https://geeksofcolor.co/anime/gray-haddock-genlock-interview) • [4](https://press.wbd.com/na/media-release/hbo-max/hbo-max-orders-second-season-rooster-teeths-genlock-mecha-animated-series-starring) The series ran for two seasons of eight episodes each, premiering on Rooster Teeth on January 26, 2019 and concluding on [HBO Max](https://www.edgepedia.org/hbo-max) on December 23, 2021.[5](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lOE4tIKwA3c) • [6](https://www.tvmaze.com/shows/34534/genlock)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Format | American 3D computer-animated mecha science fiction series, episodes of about 26 minutes, TV-14[1](https://genlock.fandom.com/wiki/Gen%3ALOCK) • [7](https://www.justwatch.com/us/tv-show/gen-lock) |
| Creator | Gray Haddock, then Head of Animation at Rooster Teeth[2](https://www.syfy.com/syfy-wire/genlock-rooster-teeth-gray-haddock-sci-fi-anime-michael-b-jordan) |
| Run | Season 1 premiered January 26, 2019 on Rooster Teeth; season 2 debuted November 4, 2021 on HBO Max; final episode December 23, 2021[5](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lOE4tIKwA3c) • [8](https://press.wbd.com/na/property/genlock) • [6](https://www.tvmaze.com/shows/34534/genlock) |
| Episodes | 2 seasons, 8 episodes each (16 total)[7](https://www.justwatch.com/us/tv-show/gen-lock) |
| Lead cast | Michael B. Jordan as Julian Chase; Maisie Williams, David Tennant, Dakota Fanning, Golshifteh Farahani, Asia Kate Dillon, Kōichi Yamadera[5](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lOE4tIKwA3c) |
| Setting | Fifty years in the future (season 1 is placed in 2068), a global war between the Polity and the authoritarian Union[4](https://press.wbd.com/na/media-release/hbo-max/hbo-max-orders-second-season-rooster-teeths-genlock-mecha-animated-series-starring) • [9](https://www.starburstmagazine.com/reviews/genlock/) |
| Current availability | Streaming on HBO Max/Max; digital purchase on Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, and Fandango At Home[7](https://www.justwatch.com/us/tv-show/gen-lock) |
## Spoilers
### Premise
The story is set fifty years in the future, in a near-future dystopia undergoing a new, technologically driven world war.[4](https://press.wbd.com/na/media-release/hbo-max/hbo-max-orders-second-season-rooster-teeths-genlock-mecha-animated-series-starring) An oppressive authoritarian force, the Union, threatens to conquer the world, and Earth's remaining free society recruits a diverse team of young pilots to control a new class of mecha described as a generational leap over other machines in the series.[3](https://geeksofcolor.co/anime/gray-haddock-genlock-interview) • [10](https://www.inverse.com/article/47778-how-rooster-teeth-genlock-was-influenced-by-iron-man-and-gundam)
The central mechanism is the gen:LOCK program: compatible pilots upload their minds into Holons, giant weaponized robot bodies.[9](https://www.starburstmagazine.com/reviews/genlock/) Pilot Julian Chase, after sustaining devastating injuries, returns in the form of a Holon warrior, and Dr. Rufus Weller works to crack the gen:LOCK code while Chase, Miranda, Cammie, and their team of Polity fighters battle the Union.[11](https://www.hulu.com/series/genlock-097b6a9c-58f6-4d40-9bea-2b6ee399515d?tab=details) The recruits find that their newfound abilities come at no small cost, and Chase must weigh sacrificing friends, family, and his own humanity to save an increasingly hostile world.[6](https://www.tvmaze.com/shows/34534/genlock) • [11](https://www.hulu.com/series/genlock-097b6a9c-58f6-4d40-9bea-2b6ee399515d?tab=details)
### Cast and characters
The series stars [Michael B. Jordan](https://www.edgepedia.org/michael-b-jordan) as Julian Chase, with [Maisie Williams](https://www.edgepedia.org/maisie-williams) as Cammie MacCloud, Kōichi Yamadera as Kazu Iida, Golshifteh Farahani as Yasamin "Yaz" Madrani, [Asia Kate Dillon](https://www.edgepedia.org/asia-kate-dillon) as Valentina "Val" Romanyszyn, Blaine Gibson as Sinclair, and David Tennant as Dr. Rufus Weller.[5](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lOE4tIKwA3c) Dakota Fanning also features in the principal cast.[11](https://www.hulu.com/series/genlock-097b6a9c-58f6-4d40-9bea-2b6ee399515d?tab=details) Jordan serves as an executive producer through his company Outlier Society, with Alana Mayo also executive producing season 2.[4](https://press.wbd.com/na/media-release/hbo-max/hbo-max-orders-second-season-rooster-teeths-genlock-mecha-animated-series-starring) • [8](https://press.wbd.com/na/property/genlock)
Haddock framed the ensemble as a deliberate choice, saying that gen:LOCK "provided a fresh opportunity from day one with an ensemble that reflects the world around us."
## Production and influences
Gray Haddock, Rooster Teeth's Head of Animation, wrote and directed the series, which was in development for years before its January 2019 release.[12](https://www.otakunews.com/Article/4631/an-interview-with-gray-haddock-of-rooster-teeth-about-new-show-genlock) The show draws openly on Japanese mecha anime; Haddock cited specific mecha anime that the studio referred to throughout production, and influences named for the series include the cyberpunk works *Ghost in the Shell* and *Psycho-Pass*, the character-oriented storytelling of *Kiznaiver*, and the science fiction anime of [Gen Urobuchi](https://www.edgepedia.org/gen-urobuchi).[10](https://www.inverse.com/article/47778-how-rooster-teeth-genlock-was-influenced-by-iron-man-and-gundam) • [1](https://genlock.fandom.com/wiki/Gen%3ALOCK) Haddock also described iterative technology within the story: armor upgrades whose look players can redesign, and inner-frame redesigns that let the mecha move away from humanoid forms toward animalistic or more creative designs.[12](https://www.otakunews.com/Article/4631/an-interview-with-gray-haddock-of-rooster-teeth-about-new-show-genlock)
The Science Fiction Encyclopedia describes the result as a series that, beyond being a straightforward anime-style mecha show, proved "thoughtfully written, amusing, and agreeably diverse while delivering exciting fight scenes."[13](https://sf-encyclopedia.com/entry/genlock) Reviewing season 1, *Starburst* praised the smooth cell shading and fluid animation, calling it arguably Rooster Teeth's strongest entry to date in characters and animation standard.[9](https://www.starburstmagazine.com/reviews/genlock/)
## Release and HBO Max partnership
Season 1 premiered on Rooster Teeth on January 26, 2019, and also reached the [Adult Swim](https://www.edgepedia.org/adult-swim) audience.[5](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lOE4tIKwA3c) • [4](https://press.wbd.com/na/media-release/hbo-max/hbo-max-orders-second-season-rooster-teeths-genlock-mecha-animated-series-starring) On October 24, 2019, HBO Max ordered a second season in what was described as a first-of-its-kind partnership, the streaming platform's first with Rooster Teeth; season 2 would premiere on HBO Max and become available on Rooster Teeth for FIRST members 90 days later.[4](https://press.wbd.com/na/media-release/hbo-max/hbo-max-orders-second-season-rooster-teeths-genlock-mecha-animated-series-starring) Season 2 debuted on HBO Max on November 4, 2021, as a Max Original, and the season finale, "Touch What's in Front of You," aired on December 23, 2021.[8](https://press.wbd.com/na/property/genlock) • [6](https://www.tvmaze.com/shows/34534/genlock)
## After Rooster Teeth
In March 2024, [Warner Bros. Discovery](https://www.edgepedia.org/warner-bros-discovery) shut down Rooster Teeth, the Austin entertainment firm founded in 2003, citing fundamental shifts in consumer behavior and monetization across digital media.[14](https://www.axios.com/local/austin/2024/03/06/rooster-teeth-shutdown-warner-bros-discovery) The company said it aimed to sell Rooster Teeth's catalog and intellectual property, explicitly naming *RWBY* and Gen:Lock, Michael B. Jordan's animated sci-fi streaming series, among the assets.[14](https://www.axios.com/local/austin/2024/03/06/rooster-teeth-shutdown-warner-bros-discovery) The series remains distributed on Max, and can be purchased digitally on Amazon Video, the Apple TV Store, and Fandango At Home.[7](https://www.justwatch.com/us/tv-show/gen-lock)
## References
1. [Gen:LOCK, Fandom wiki overview](https://genlock.fandom.com/wiki/Gen%3ALOCK)
2. [gen:LOCK: How Rooster Teeth's Gray Haddock is crafting the next generation of sci-fi heroes | SYFY WIRE](https://www.syfy.com/syfy-wire/genlock-rooster-teeth-gray-haddock-sci-fi-anime-michael-b-jordan)
3. [NYCC 2018: Interview with 'gen:LOCK' Creator Gray Haddock, Geeks of Color](https://geeksofcolor.co/anime/gray-haddock-genlock-interview)
4. [HBO Max Orders a Second Season of Rooster Teeth's gen:LOCK, Warner Bros. Discovery Pressroom](https://press.wbd.com/na/media-release/hbo-max/hbo-max-orders-second-season-rooster-teeths-genlock-mecha-animated-series-starring)
5. [gen:LOCK - A First Look, Rooster Teeth (YouTube)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lOE4tIKwA3c)
6. [gen:LOCK, TVmaze](https://www.tvmaze.com/shows/34534/genlock)
7. [gen:LOCK - watch tv show streaming online, JustWatch](https://www.justwatch.com/us/tv-show/gen-lock)
8. [gen:LOCK property page, Warner Bros. Discovery Pressroom](https://press.wbd.com/na/property/genlock)
9. [GEN:LOCK review, Starburst Magazine](https://www.starburstmagazine.com/reviews/genlock/)
10. [How Rooster Teeth's gen:LOCK Was Influenced by Iron Man and Gundam, Inverse](https://www.inverse.com/article/47778-how-rooster-teeth-genlock-was-influenced-by-iron-man-and-gundam)
11. [gen:LOCK series details, Hulu](https://www.hulu.com/series/genlock-097b6a9c-58f6-4d40-9bea-2b6ee399515d?tab=details)
12. [An Interview with Gray Haddock of Rooster Teeth About New Show gen:Lock, Otaku News](https://www.otakunews.com/Article/4631/an-interview-with-gray-haddock-of-rooster-teeth-about-new-show-genlock)
13. [gen:LOCK, The Science Fiction Encyclopedia](https://sf-encyclopedia.com/entry/genlock)
14. [Rooster Teeth calls it quits, Axios](https://www.axios.com/local/austin/2024/03/06/rooster-teeth-shutdown-warner-bros-discovery)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Series and fictional screen worlds › Scripted television and comedy series › Genre and subject-scripted series › Science fiction television series › Dystopian and post-apocalyptic series*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 3, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 3, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license