| Cosmic Princess Kaguya! | |
|---|---|
 English release poster | |
| Kanji | 超かぐや姫！ |
| Revised Hepburn | Chō Kaguya-hime! |
| Directed by | Shingo Yamashita [ja] |
| Screenplay by |
|
| Based on | The Tale of the Bamboo Cutter |
| Starring | |
| Cinematography | Daisuke Chiba[1] |
| Edited by | Ryōta Kinami[1] |
| Music by | Conisch |
Production companies |
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| Distributed by | Netflix |
Release date |
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Running time | 142 minutes[2] |
| Country | Japan |
| Language | Japanese |
Cosmic Princess Kaguya! (Japanese:超かぐや姫！,Hepburn:Chō Kaguya-hime!) is a 2026 Japaneseanimatedmusicalyurifantasy film[3][4][5][6] directed byShingo Yamashita [ja], in his feature directorial debut, from a screenplay he co-wrote withSaeri Natsuo [ja]. A reimagining of the folktaleThe Tale of the Bamboo Cutter, the film follows high school student Iroha Sakayori and Kaguya, a girl from theMoon, as they compete in astreamer tournament within thevirtual world of Tsukuyomi. It is produced byStudio Colorido and Studio Chromato with character designs from Akihiro Nagae and Hechima. The film stars the voices ofYūko Natsuyoshi,Anna Nagase, andSaori Hayami.
Netflix announced the film and revealed the main cast and staff in November 2025. The film started development in 2022, with the final product being delivered in September 2025. Its soundtrack consists of an original score composed byConisch with songs provided byVocaloid producers Ryo ofSupercell, Yuigot,Aqu3ra [ja],HoneyWorks,40mP [ja], and Kz ofLivetune. The film was released on Netflix on January 22, 2026, along with alimited theatrical release atLaemmle Glendale in California.
Iroha Sakayori, a high school student living independently from her family after her father's death, struggles to maintain a tight schedule of school, tuition and part-time work while also spending time in thevirtual world of Tsukuyomi. On her way home one night, she encounters a glowingutility pole with a baby inside. Reluctantly taking her in, the baby rapidly grows up into a young girl over the span of a few days. The girl, claiming to be from theMoon, is named Kaguya after theJapanese folktale. Dejected by the "depressing" ending of the folktale, Kaguya aims for a "happy" ending with Iroha.
As Iroha's daily life begins to be disrupted by Kaguya, much to her annoyance, she introduces her to Tsukuyomi and its virtual administrator, Yachiyo Runami. Together with Kaguya'svirtual pet InuDOGE, Kaguya and Iroha sign up for the Yachiyo Cup, astreamer tournament where the winners get to perform a live show with Yachiyo. Kaguya quickly becomes a popular streamer with Iroha's help, inadvertently placing them in the crosshairs of Black OnyX, the top streamer group led by Akira Mikado. After the group challenges the pair to a competition in KASSEN, a territory battle game in Tsukuyomi, Kaguya learns that Akira is Iroha's estranged brother.
Despite Yachiyo's assistance, Black OnyX wins the KASSEN match, but the outpouring of support from fans allows Kaguya and Iroha to win the Yachiyo Cup instead, securing their live show with Yachiyo as well as reconciliation with Akira, who agrees to co-sign a new apartment for the pair. The live show is successful, but after the performance, Tsukuyomi is invaded by mysterious beings, revealed to have come from the moon to bring Kaguya home. Although repelled by Yachiyo, the beings promise to come back by the nextfull moon, a fact that troubles Iroha, who is now unwilling to part with Kaguya.
On the day of Kaguya's impending departure, as she performs a graduation concert in Tsukuyomi, Iroha attempts to fight the lunar forces with the help of Black OnyX and her friends, but are ultimately unable to stop her from being taken by them. Returning back to her normal life but unwilling to accept Kaguya's absence, Iroha completes a song she and her father had never finished and plays it. After she does so, she reaches a revelation and logs back into Tsukuyomi, where Yachiyo confirms that she is a future version of Kaguya.
Having been motivated to return back to Earth by Iroha's song, Kaguya had attempted totravel back in time to reunite with her, but her ship had collided with anasteroid, sending her back 8,000 years into the past. Unable to leave her damaged ship, InuDOGE (who later became Yachiyo's companion Fushi) served as her communicator, interacting with people over the ages until the creation of Tsukuyomi, where she was uploaded into avirtual avatar.
Determined to bring Kaguya back into the real world, Iroha scraps her plans of becoming alaw student and works on creating anandroid body for Yachiyo to upload her digital consciousness into. After ten years, she succeeds, allowing the new Kaguya, Iroha, and Yachiyo to continue perfoming, both in real life and Tsukuyomi.
| Character | Voice actor[7][8] | |
|---|---|---|
| Japanese | English | |
| Kaguya (かぐや) | Yūko Natsuyoshi | Jeannie Tirado |
| Iroha Sakayori (酒寄 彩葉,Sakayori Iroha) | Anna Nagase | Dawn M. Bennett |
| Yachiyo Runami (月見 ヤチヨ,Runami Yachiyo) | Saori Hayami | Ryan Bartley Frankie Kevich(singing) |
| Fushi | Rie Kugimiya | Cassandra Lee Morris |
| Akira Mikado (帝 アキラ,Mikado Akira) | Miyu Irino | Max Mittelman |
| Rai Komazawa (駒沢 雷,Komazawa Rai) | Yuma Uchida | A.J. Beckles |
| Noi Komazawa (駒沢 乃依,Komazawa Noi) | Yoshitsugu Matsuoka | Casey Mongillo |
| Roka Ayatsumugi (綾紬 芦花,Ayatsumugi Roka) | Yoshino Aoyama | Cassandra Lee Morris |
| Mami Isayama (諌山 真実,Isayama Mami) | Konomi Kohara | Anairis Quiñones |
| Otako the Loyal Dog (忠犬オタ公,Chūken Otakō) | Fairouz Ai | |
| Koto Okkotteru (乙事照 琴,Okkotteru Koto) | Natsuki Hanae | Kieran Regan |
In April 2022,Studio Colorido signed a deal withNetflix to co-produce three feature-lengthanime films for the platform,[9] with the first two films beingDrifting Home (2022) andMy Oni Girl (2024).[10] In November 2025, Netflix announced thatShingo Yamashita [ja] would direct his first feature-length film,Cosmic Princess Kaguya![11] He had previously directed the web seriesPokémon: Twilight Wings and theopening sequences for several anime series, including thefirst season ofJujutsu Kaisen andChainsaw Man.[12][13] After directingPokémon: Twilight Wings,Twin Engine offered Yamashita to work on an original film. Yamashita's initial plans for the film were rejected since they "lacked elements that would appeal to the public as an original work," after which he created a new proposal whose elements include themetaverse andlive streamers.[13] The decision to includeVocaloid producers came after Yamashita realized that Yachiyo's characteristics and design had similarities toHatsune Miku.[14] He also citedOne Piece Film: Red andNeedy Girl Overdose as partial influences for the film.[14] The project began development in 2022. Thestoryboards for the film were completed in June 2024, and an additional year was allotted to finishing the animation. The final product was delivered in September 2025.[15] The film is a reimagining of the Japanese folktaleThe Tale of the Bamboo Cutter.[3] Yamashita co-wrote the screenplay withSaeri Natsuo [ja].[1] Naoya Nakayama directed the film's musical performances, and Masaya Machida served as theCG director.[1]
Studio Chromato, where Yamashita serves as the representative director,[16] produced the animation with Studio Colorido; the film is Studio Chromato's first production.[11][12] Akihiro Nagae, who worked onDrifting Home, designed the characters in the film's real world, and illustrator Hechima handled the character designs in the Tsukuyomi world.[1][17]Yūko Natsuyoshi,Anna Nagase, andSaori Hayami were cast as the main characters Kaguya, Iroha Sakayori, and Yachiyo Runami.[11][12] In December 2025,Rie Kugimiya was added to the cast as the voice of Fushi.[1] The following month, Netflix revealed seven cast members and the English-language dub cast; the latter includesJeannie Tirado,Dawn M. Bennett, and Ryan Bartley as the voices of the main characters, with Frankie Kevich providing Yachiyo's singing voice.[7]
Conisch composed the film's score.[1] Six Vocaloid producers provided original songs for the film: "Ex-Otogibanashi" by Ryo ofSupercell, "Remember" by Yuigot, "Hoshi Furu Umi" byAqu3ra [ja], "Watashi wa, Watashi no Koto ga Suki" byHoneyWorks, "Shunkan, Symphony" by40mP [ja], and "Reply" by Kz ofLivetune.[18] "Ex-Otogibanashi" is performed by Hayami and served as the film's main theme song; it was released as a six-trackCD single on January 23, 2026.[19] Acover version ofBump of Chicken's song "Ray", performed by Natsuyoshi and Hayami, served as the ending theme song.[1][20] A music video for "Ray", directed and storyboarded by Yamashita, was released on January 31, 2026.[21][22] It contains newly animated footage, with Melvyn Tan ofAnime Trending noting that it has "a mix of afterstory content and shots that highlight certain offscreen elements" andAnimate Times calling it a "sequel to the story".[21][22] "CPK! Remix", a four-track CD single, was also released on January 23, 2026, and containsremixes of the film's songs, performed byNagi Yanagi andHatsune Miku.[19] The film's score and soundtrack were released onmusic streaming services on the same day,[23] the latter of which peaked at No. 5 onBillboard Japan Hot Albums.[24]
A teaser poster and trailer were released along with the film's announcement in November 2025. The trailer featured a remix of Ryo's 2008 Vocaloid song "World Is Mine", originally performed by Hatsune Miku. Hayami provided the vocals for the remix, titled "World Is Mine CPK! Remix", as her character Yachiyo Runami.[4][17] Three additional trailers featuring each main character were unveiled in the same month.[17] The film's main poster and trailer were released in December,[1] followed by a second full trailer in January.[7] Cover versions of five Vocaloid songs – Aqu3ra's "Lonely Universe", HoneyWorks' "Taketori Overnight Sensation", 40mP's "Torinoko City", Yuigot's "Yume o Miru Shima", and Kz's "Tell Your World" – were also performed by Hayami and Natsuyoshi and published on the film'sYouTube channel.[25] The film has held multiple collaboration events with companies such asYamaha Corporation, as well as withFuji City.[26]
Cosmic Princess Kaguya! was released onNetflix on January 22, 2026.[11] It had a commemorative screening at the Grand Cinema Sunshine inToshima on the same day,[27] and alimited theatrical release was held atLaemmle Glendale in California, U.S, from January 22 to 29.[28][29] The film will be released in 19 Japanese theaters for one week starting on February 20, 2026; it will include screenings that allow cheering and waving ofglow sticks.[30][5]
Amanga adaptation by Tarō Yoneda began serialization with its first two chapters inKadokawa Shoten'sComptiq magazine on January 9, 2026;[19] later chapters were published in Kadokawa'sKadoComi [ja] website.[31] The manga's first volume was released on February 10, 2026.[19] Anovelization by Naruto Kiriyama with illustrations by Asao Urata was released by Kadokawa on January 30, 2026. Supervised by Yamashita, the novel contains additional scenes not shown in the film.[19] An 80-page guidebook compiled byNewtype's editorial department, subtitledHappy End no Sono Saki e!, was also published on January 30.[32]
For the ending theme"Ray (Cosmic Princess Kaguya! Version)", the staff of the movie produced a music video depicting events happening after the story's finale, where Kaguya - to grow older with Iroha - renounces her immortality by burying her bamboo shaped ship at the top ofMount Fuji and becomes a human. The video also recaps the main characters' journey throughout the story.[33]
(in Japanese)| Feature films |
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| Related | |
