Netflix first announced an anime series adaptation of the Pacific Rim films in November 2018, originally slated for a 2020 release before being pushed back.

The official title, Pacific Rim: The Black, and its 2021 release window were only revealed during Netflix's virtual 'Anime Festival' livestream event in October 2020, at which point a second season was also greenlit.

Several creators pitched different concepts for the series to producer Legendary, but it was ultimately the pitch from showrunners Greg Johnson and Craig Kyle that was chosen to move forward and be presented to Netflix.

Before production began, showrunners Johnson and Kyle debated whether to make the series in 2D or 3D animation, weighing the high cost of 2D and its limitations for camera movement in detailed environments.

The creators ultimately chose 3D animation but wanted to preserve a 2D visual aesthetic, which led them to hire Japanese studio Polygon Pictures, whom they considered masters of that hybrid approach.

Polygon Pictures handled most of the series' design work, with assistance from western supervising director Jae-hong Kim, and both the Japanese and western teams met together in Tokyo to discuss the designs.

The series features both English and Japanese voice casts, with actors like Gideon Adlon and Yui Shimodaya both voicing Hayley Travis for their respective language versions.

A prequel graphic novel titled Pacific Rim: Blackout, written by Cavan Scott and illustrated by Nelson Daniel, was released on February 22, 2022, to accompany the show.