Scarlett Johansson returns to the sci-fi genre with the long awaited film adaptation of Masamune Shirow's best-selling Japanese manga series 'Ghost in the Shell' for which the trailer is now available. Directed by Rupert Sanders, it is probably one of the most highly anticipated sci-fi rollercoasters of the year.

Ghost In The ShellScarlett Johansson stars in 'Ghost In The Shell'

The trailer for the new cyberpunk adventure has arrived, complete with an eerie rendition of Depeche Mode's 'Enjoy The Silence'. From what we can tell, it's Johansson - star of 'Avengers', 'Lucy' and 'Under The Skin' - once again at her best in a vibrant and horrific thriller.

The Major (Johansson) has always felt somewhat separate to the rest of humanity, and there's a good reason for that. She is essentially a cyborg; a human brain in an artificial body who has been re-designed to lead the anti-terrorism group Section 9. She and her team fight to take down cyber-terrorists and hackers everyday, but she's about to meet her match when a new adversary comes along threatening to dismantle  Hanka Robotic's developments artificial intelligence.

Watch the trailer for 'Ghost In The Shell' here:


 

If that's not all, the Major is still coming to terms with her identity; she's been told she was recovered by technology from the point of death, but she's determined to discover who she was before she was recruited as a crime-fighting cybernetic soldier. Meanwhile, her nerve is threatening her own mortality, because this cyborg was not built for courage of this kind.

The film has been directed by Rupert Sanders ('Snow White and the Huntsman'), with a screenplay by Jonathan Herman ('Straight Outta Compton') and Jamie Moss ('Street Kings'). Alongside Scarlett Johansson stars Juliette Binoche as the character Dr. Ouelet and Michael Pitt as Kuze.

Of course, the casting of Scarlett Johansson has been cause for criticism given that she is a white actress playing a traditionally Japanese lead, though many have supported the decision because of her sci-fi background and because the story is largely about re-discovering self-identity when our bodies are not our own.

'Ghost in the Shell' will be released in US theaters on March 31st 2017.