WIT Studio announced LONA, an original TV anime directed by Takashi Katagiri and written by Akiko Nogi, featuring character designs by Posuka Demizu and a Spring 2027 premiere.
WIT Studio announced LONA, an original TV anime set in a fractured near-future world where the dead mysteriously return. The series is slated for a Spring 2027 premiere, with a first teaser trailer and visuals already unveiled.
LONA brings together a striking roster of talent across anime, live-action, and manga. Takashi Katagiri, who directed the SPY×FAMILY CODE: White film, helms the project. Akiko Nogi, the screenwriter behind the hit Japanese drama Unnatural and the anime film INU-OH, is handling series composition and scripts. Character designs originate from Posuka Demizu, the artist best known for co-creating The Promised Neverland manga, with animation character design duties falling to Yūdai Iino, whose credits include The Devil Is a Part-Timer!! seasons two and three.
The production staff extends well beyond the core trio. Shōji Hata serves as sound director, Hiroko Sébu composes the music, and Shigenori Hirozumi takes on CG direction. Animation producer Kazuki Yamanaka, who previously worked on SPY×FAMILY and Bubble, rounds out the leadership team at WIT Studio.
The series is set in the not-so-distant future, where humanity faces a terrifying phenomenon: people who should be dead are reappearing and attacking the living. At the center of the story is the Neural Optical Analysis Laboratory the organization that gives the show its title. Researchers at LONA analyze the brains of the deceased to uncover what drives these incidents, probing the deeper question of what people think about and what they leave behind before death.
According to WIT Studio, the series draws real-world inspiration from the SPring-8 synchrotron radiation facility at the RIKEN research institute in Hyogo Prefecture, Japan. That scientific grounding suggests a harder edge to the show's sci-fi premise than typical supernatural fare.
Three principal cast members were revealed alongside the project. Minako Kotobuki voices Ao, a researcher at LONA. Anna Nagase plays Sango, a trainee researcher working under Ao. Fūka Izumi takes on the role of Mugen, described as a mascot character. The dynamic between a seasoned researcher and her apprentice navigating brain-analysis missions forms the narrative backbone, though additional cast announcements are expected as the Spring 2027 window approaches.
WIT Studio launched a dedicated countdown website for the project, where the first teaser trailer, a teaser commercial, and three teaser visuals are now available. The visuals showcase the principal characters and the interior of the LONA facility. No episode count or streaming platform has been confirmed at this stage.
With WIT Studio's pedigree the house behind Attack on Titan's first three seasons, Vinland Saga, and Ranking of Kings and a creative team that spans anime blockbusters, award-winning live-action television, and best-selling manga, LONA is positioned as one of the more ambitious original projects on the Spring 2027 calendar. Further details on broadcast and distribution are expected in the months ahead.
Weekly updates on the latest releases and announcements.
