Crunchyroll and Sony Acquire Global Rights to Makoto Shinkai's Next Film

Crunchyroll and Sony Pictures Entertainment have secured worldwide distribution rights to Makoto Shinkai's upcoming and still-untitled feature film. The deal covers all territories outside most of Asia, with India specifically included among the regions where the two companies will handle the release.

A Landmark Distribution Agreement

The announcement marks one of the most significant anime film distribution deals of the year. Crunchyroll will co-distribute the film alongside Sony Pictures Entertainment, covering theatrical and subsequent home entertainment windows across its licensed territories. The exclusion of most Asian markets suggests that separate regional distributors will handle the film in territories such as Japan, China, South Korea, and Southeast Asia, following the standard pattern for major anime theatrical releases.

The deal structure mirrors the companies' previous collaboration on Shinkai's 2022 hit Suzume, which received a wide international theatrical rollout through the same Crunchyroll and Sony partnership. That film opened at number one in Japan and went on to earn over $300 million at the worldwide box office, with more than $10 million of that total coming from the U.S. market alone. Suzume also earned a Golden Globe nomination for Best Animated Feature, reflecting the growing international appetite for anime cinema.

Specific terms of the new licensing arrangement have not been disclosed.

What Is Known About the Film

Concrete details about Shinkai's next project remain scarce. The title, plot, and release date have not been announced. In November 2025, Shinkai shared on social media that he was working on a "new film" alongside "dependable companions," though he noted he could not yet formally announce the project at that time.

The film will be Shinkai's first feature since Suzume, which followed a teenager's journey to close supernatural doors unleashing disasters across Japan. That film cemented Shinkai's status as one of the most commercially successful anime filmmakers working today, building on the global phenomenon of Your Name in 2016. His consistent ability to draw both domestic Japanese audiences and international viewers in large numbers makes each new project especially attractive to global distributors.

What This Means for Crunchyroll's Theatrical Ambitions

The acquisition underscores Crunchyroll's expanding role in anime film distribution beyond its core streaming platform. Over the past several years, the Sony-owned service has steadily built out its theatrical distribution capabilities, handling the international release of major anime films including Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero and One Piece Film Red in addition to Suzume.

By securing Shinkai's next film before a title or release window has even been revealed, Crunchyroll and Sony are signaling strong confidence in the commercial potential of the director's brand. Shinkai's track record of critical and commercial success suggests the film will be a major theatrical event whenever it arrives.

Suzume is currently available to stream on Crunchyroll for viewers looking to revisit Shinkai's most recent work while further details on his next project remain under wraps.