If you’ve spent any time at all on the weirder, sharper side of Netflix lately, you’ve probably felt the sting of Inside Job being snatched away. It was a brutal move. One day Reagan Ridley is trying to navigate a shadow government while dealing with her disastrous father, and the next, the show is "un-renewed" despite a previous green light.
Honestly, it felt like a glitch in the Matrix.
But focusing only on that one cancellation does a massive disservice to the person behind it. Shion Takeuchi isn't just the "Inside Job lady." She is a CalArts alum who has quietly had her hands on almost every legendary animated project of the last decade. From the surreal humor of Regular Show to the lore-heavy mystery of Gravity Falls, her fingerprints are everywhere.
The Early Days: From Interning on Adventure Time to Boarding Regular Show
Most people don't realize that Takeuchi started at the absolute peak of the "New Wave" of animation. Back in 2010, she was an intern on the first season of Adventure Time. Think about that for a second. She was in the room when Pendleton Ward was still figuring out what the Land of Ooo even was.
That experience led her straight to Regular Show.
Working on Regular Show is basically a masterclass in "board-driven" storytelling. On that show, the writers didn't just hand over a finished script. Instead, the storyboard artists—Takeuchi included—were responsible for writing the actual dialogue and gags as they drew the panels. If you ever laughed at a specific, awkward exchange between Mordecai and Rigby in those early seasons, there’s a decent chance it came from her pen. She didn't just draw the show; she helped build its DNA.
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Shion Takeuchi Movies and TV Shows: The Pixar Era and Disney Years
Around 2013, she made a jump that most animators only dream of. She headed to Pixar. While she didn't direct a feature, her role as a story artist on Monsters University and Inside Out is worth mentioning. It’s where she likely honed that ability to take high-concept, almost abstract ideas—like "emotions having feelings"—and turn them into something deeply human and relatable.
Then came the Disney years. This is where the Shion Takeuchi movies and TV shows list gets really interesting for the hardcore fans.
Gravity Falls and the Alex Hirsch Connection
You can’t talk about Takeuchi without talking about Gravity Falls. She joined the writing staff during the height of the show’s complexity. She was nominated for two Annie Awards for her writing on the series, specifically for episodes that balanced the show’s trademark "spooky" vibe with genuine character growth.
It’s also where she forged a creative partnership with Alex Hirsch. He eventually became an executive producer on her own show, Inside Job, which makes sense. They both share a love for conspiracy theories, hidden codes, and characters who are arguably too smart for their own good.
The Disenchantment Detour
Before she got her own series, she spent a significant chunk of time (about 20 episodes) in the writer's room for Matt Groening’s Disenchantment. If you look at the episodes she wrote, you can see her style start to peak through—that cynical, fast-paced, "the world is broken but the people are trying" energy that would eventually define her later work.
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What Really Happened with Inside Job?
The elephant in the room is always the cancellation. Inside Job Part 1 dropped in late 2021, and Part 2 followed in 2022. It was a hit. The numbers weren't just "okay"; they were solid. According to Netflix's own engagement reports, Part 1 clocked over 21 million hours watched.
Then, in January 2023, the floor dropped out. Takeuchi posted a heartbreaking confirmation on social media that the show was dead.
"I’m heartbroken to confirm that Netflix has decided to cancel season 2 of Inside Job," she wrote. "Reagan and Brett deserved to get their ending."
It was a rare case of a show being renewed and then "un-renewed," a move that usually only happens during massive corporate shifts or budget panics. It left fans with a massive cliffhanger regarding the "Robed Figures" and Reagan's future.
Where is Shion Takeuchi Now?
It’s 2026, and Takeuchi has kept a relatively low profile since the Inside Job fallout. She’s popped up at industry rallies (like the TAG rally) alongside other animation heavyweights like Rebecca Sugar and Matt Braly. There are rumors of new development deals, but she’s the kind of creator who stays quiet until the work is ready to speak for itself.
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If you’re looking to catch up on her full filmography, here’s the essentials list:
- Regular Show (Writer/Storyboard Artist)
- Gravity Falls (Writer)
- Inside Out (Story Artist)
- Lost in Oz (Writer)
- Disenchantment (Staff Writer)
- Inside Job (Creator/Executive Producer)
Actionable Insights for Fans and Creators
If you’re a fan of her work, the best way to support creators like Takeuchi is to keep the "long tail" of their shows alive. Rewatch Inside Job on Netflix to keep those engagement numbers in the system—it’s the only language streamers speak.
For aspiring writers, Takeuchi’s career path is a blueprint. She didn't start as a "Showrunner." She started as an intern. She learned the craft of storyboarding, which taught her how to write visually. She moved between major studios (Cartoon Network, Pixar, Disney, Amazon, Netflix), building a network of collaborators who eventually helped her launch her own vision.
The "Deep State" might have taken down Cognito Inc., but Shion Takeuchi’s influence on modern animation isn't going anywhere. Keep an eye on her—she's likely cooking up something just as chaotic and brilliant as we've come to expect.
To dive deeper into the world of adult animation, you should check out the "art of" books for Gravity Falls or Inside Job if you can find them. They offer a rare look at the storyboards that Takeuchi helped craft during the formative years of her career.