IFC Films has acquired North American rights to two films from director Shinya Tsukamoto’s acclaimed Tetsuo trilogy: Tetsuo III: The Bullet Man and Tetsuo II: The Body Hammer.

The Tetsuo series tells the story of a man who becomes a human weapon when he gets angry.

Tetsuo III: The Bullet Man (pictured) is the third installment in the series, the first new Tetsuo film in nearly 20 years, and Tsukamoto’s first English-language film. Tetsuo II: The Body Hammer is the second in the franchise and dates back to 1992.

IFC plans an early 2011 release for both films.

“This project started as Tetsuo America 17 years ago, so I am very glad that the new film will be released in the United States,” Tsukamoto said. “IFC is the ideal distributor for this film.”

Jeff Deutchman negotiated the deal for Bullet Man with Fionnuala Jamison of Coproduction Office and with Kiyo Joo of Goldview for Body Hammer.