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Japanese Films Playing in U.S. Theaters in 2025 (KOKUHO wide release expected in early 2026)

アメリカで上映される日本映画

Living abroad makes it harder to catch new Japanese movies — that’s the worst.

But if you’re in the U.S. (especially Los Angeles, which has many film festivals), there are still plenty of chances to see Japanese films on the big screen. In recent years GKIDS and other North American distributors have been bringing more Japanese titles to U.S. cinemas (for example, THE FIRST SLAM DUNK in 2023). This page lists the Japanese films scheduled to screen in U.S. theaters in 2025. I’ll update this post as new information becomes available.

Japan's No1 hit 2025 "KOKUHO"

A notable item: on September 2, 2025, GKIDS announced it had acquired North American rights to KOKUHO (English title: KOKUHO / Japanese title: 国宝), which is expected to open in U.S. theaters in early 2026; it will also screen at AFI Fest 2025 and at select theaters from mid-November 2025.



Jan–Mar releases


(Screening periods vary by theater — check local listings.)

  • Paprika（パプリカ） — originally 2006 — playing from Jan 8, 2025 (Sony Pictures Classics distribution). 
  • The Colors Within（きみの色） — 2024 — playing from Jan 24, 2025 (GKIDS). 
  • Cowboy Bebop: The Movie（カウボーイビバップ 天国の扉） — 2001 — playing from Feb 5, 2025. 
  • Attack on Titan: THE LAST ATTACK（進撃の巨人 THE LAST ATTACK） — 2024 — playing from Feb 10, 2025 (Crunchyroll / Sony Pictures Entertainment). 
  • Mobile Suit Gundam GQuuuuuuuX -Beginning-（機動戦士ガンダム ジークアクス） — 2025 — playing from Feb 28, 2025 (GKIDS). 
  • Mobile Suit Gundam: Char’s Counterattack（機動戦士ガンダム 逆襲のシャア） — 1988 — special screenings Mar 12 & Mar 16, 2025. 
  • Princess Mononoke（もののけ姫） — 1997 — playing from Mar 26, 2025 (GKIDS). 



Apr–Jun releases

  • Princess Mononoke（もののけ姫） — 4K remaster — playing from Mar 26, 2025 in North American IMAX theaters (both original Japanese with subtitles and English-dubbed prints). 
  • Vampire Hunter D（バンパイアハンターD） — U.S. release (original Japan 2001) — playing from Apr 9, 2025. 
  • Kaiju No. 8: Mission Recon（怪獣8号） — 2025 — playing from Apr 13, 2025. 
  • Colorful Stage! The Movie: A Miku Who Can’t Sing（劇場版プロジェクトセカイ 壊れたセカイと歌えないミク） — 2025 — playing from Apr 17, 2025 (GKIDS). 
  • Wolf Children（おおかみこどもの雨と雪） — 2012 — playing May 11–13, 2025 (GKIDS). 
  • Kiki’s Delivery Service（魔女の宅急便） — 1989 — playing May 17–21, 2025 (GKIDS). 
  • Dan Da Dan: Evil Eye — playing from Jun 6, 2025 (GKIDS). 
  • The Secret World of Arrietty（借りぐらしのアリエッティ） — 2010 — playing Jun 22–24, 2025 (GKIDS).



Jul–Sep releases

  • Hot Spring Shark Attack（温泉シャーク） — 2024 — playing from Jul 9, 2025 (Utopia). 
  • JUJUTSU KAISEN: Hidden Inventory / Premature Death（呪術廻戦 懐玉・玉折／渋谷事変） — 2025 — playing from Jul 16, 2025 (GKIDS). 
  • My Neighbor Totoro（となりのトトロ） — 1988 — playing Jul 19–23, 2025 (GKIDS). 
  • Summer Wars（サマーウォーズ） — 2009 — playing Jul 27–29, 2025 (GKIDS). 
  • Shin Godzilla（シン・ゴジラ） — 2016 — 4K remaster playing from Aug 14, 2025 (GKIDS). 
  • Grave of the Fireflies（火垂るの墓） — 1988 — playing Aug 10–12, 2025 (GKIDS). 
  • The Boy and the Beast（バケモノの子） — 2015 — playing Aug 18, 2025 (Crunchyroll). 
  • Ponyo（崖の上のポニョ） — 2008 — playing Aug 23–27, 2025 (GKIDS). 
  • Demon Slayer: Kimetsu No Yaiba — Infinity Castle（劇場版「鬼滅の刃」無限城編） — 2025 — playing from Sep 12, 2025 (Crunchyroll). 
  • Howl’s Moving Castle（ハウルの動く城） — 2004 — playing Sep 20–24, 2025 (GKIDS). 
  • The Girl Who Leapt Through Time（時をかける少女） — 2006 — playing Sep 28–30, 2025 (GKIDS).



Oct–Dec releases

  • Perfect Blue（パーフェクトブルー） — 1998 — 4K remaster playing Oct 2–9, 2025 (GKIDS). 
  • 100 Meters（ひゃくえむ。） — 2025 — playing Oct 12–14, 2025 (GKIDS). 
  • Battle Royale（バトル・ロワイアル） — 2000 — 4K remaster playing Oct 12–15, 2025 (Iconic Events / Lionsgate). 
  • Spirited Away（千と千尋の神隠し） — 2001 — playing Oct 18–22, 2025 (GKIDS). 
  • Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid: A Lonely Dragon Wants to Be Loved（小林さんちのメイドラゴン さみしがりやの竜） — 2025 — playing from Oct 20, 2025. 
  • Chainsaw Man – The Movie: Reze Arc（チェンソーマン レゼ篇） — 2025 — playing from Oct 24, 2025. 
  • Virgin Punk: Clockwork Girl（ヴァージン・パンク / Clockwork Girl） — 2025 — playing from Nov 11, 2025. 
  • Angel’s Egg（天使のたまご） — 1985 — 4K remaster playing from Nov 12, 2025 (GKIDS). 
  • KOKUHO（国宝） — 2025 — set for limited screenings in LA starting Nov 14, 2025 and in NY starting Nov 21, 2025, with a wider North American release expected in early 2026 (GKIDS).
  • Boy and the Heron（君たちはどう生きるか） — 2023 — Nov 15–11/19/2025 — North American theatrical run (GKIDS).
  • RENTAL FAMILY（レンタル・ファミリー） — 2025 — North American theatrical release starting 11/21/2025.
  • JUJUTSU KAISEN: Execution — Shibuya Incident x The Culling Game Begins — Dec 5, 2025 – North American theatrical release (GKIDS).


Note: Screening windows and formats vary by theater and city — some titles are 4K remasters or IMAX presentations, others are subtitled or English-dubbed prints. Always check the distributor’s page or your local theater for exact dates, showtimes, and ticketing.

Films scheduled for 2026

  • ALL YOU NEED IS KILL — 2026 release | North American theatrical release starting Jan 16, 2026 (GKIDS)

Japanese films rumored to receive a North American theatrical release

  • ChaO（チャオ） — 2025 release — Winner of the Jury Prize at the Annecy International Animation Film Festival 2025. Set to screen at Animation is Film Festival 2025.
  • Scarlet（果てしなきスカーレット） — 2025 release — Official selection of the Venice International Film Festival 2025 and the Toronto International Film Festival 2025. Set to screen at Animation is Film Festival 2025.
  • Exit 8（8番出口） — 2025 release — Official selection of the 2025 Cannes Film Festival.


Several Japanese films are also screened each year at festivals such as Animation is Film Fest (Oct 18–20, 2025) and AFI Fest (Oct 22–26, 2025) — if you buy tickets or a festival pass you can see these films at the events.

Japanese films screened in U.S. theaters / festivals


For reference, below are the Japanese films (2012–2025) that MAY was able to see in U.S. theaters or at film festivals (mainly in Los Angeles). I selected only titles that were shown in the U.S. at around the same time as their Japanese releases — not revival screenings.

  • Rurouni Kenshin（るろうに剣心） — Director: Keishi Ôtomo — 2012 · LA Eiga Fest
  • Helter Skelter（ヘルタースケルター） — Director: Mika Ninagawa — 2012 · LA Eiga Fest
  • Wolf Children（おおかみこどもの雨と雪 / Ōkami Kodomo no Ame to Yuki） — Director: Mamoru Hosoda — 2012 · film festival screening
  • The Great Passage（舟を編む / Fune wo Amu） — Director: Yûya Ishii — 2013 · film festival screening
  • Like Father, Like Son（そして父になる / Soshite Chichi ni Naru） — Director: Hirokazu Kore-eda — 2013 · AFI Fest
  • Rurouni Kenshin: Kyoto Inferno / The Legend Ends（るろうに剣心 京都大火編／伝説の最期編） — Director: Keishi Ôtomo — 2014 · LA Eiga Fest
  • (喰女) — Director: Takashi Miike — 2014? · AFI Fest
  • Sweet Bean (An)（あん） — Director: Naomi Kawase — 2015 · AFI Fest
  • Our Little Sister（海街diary / Umimachi Diary） — Director: Hirokazu Kore-eda — 2015 · AFI Fest
  • Your Name.（君の名は。） — Director: Makoto Shinkai — 2016? · theatrical
  • In This Corner of the World（この世界の片隅に） — Director: Sunao Katabuchi — 2016? · theatrical
  • Shin Godzilla（シン・ゴジラ） — Director: Shinji Higuchi — 2016? · theatrical
  • One Cut of the Dead（カメラを止めるな） — Director: Shinichirô Ueda — 2017 · Japan Film Festival Los Angeles
  • Mirai（未来のミライ） — Director: Mamoru Hosoda — 2019 · Animation Is Film Fest
  • Weathering With You（天気の子） — Director: Makoto Shinkai — 2019 · theatrical
  • Wife of a Spy（スパイの妻） — Director: Kiyoshi Kurosawa — 2020? · theatrical
  • Poupelle of Chimney Town（えんとつ町のプペル） — Original: Akihiro Nishino — 2021 · Animation festival screening
  • Belle（竜とそばかすの姫 / Ryū to Sobakasu no Hime） — Director: Mamoru Hosoda — 2021? · theatrical
  • Drive My Car（ドライブ・マイ・カー） — Director: Ryûsuke Hamaguchi — 2021 · theatrical
  • THE FIRST SLAM DUNK（FIRST SLAM DUNK） — Creator: Takehiko Inoue — 2022? · theatrical
  • ONI（ONI） — Director: Daisuke Tsutsumi — 2022 · Animation Is Film Fest
  • No Evil Exists（悪は存在しない / Aku wa Sonzai Shinai） — Director: Ryûsuke Hamaguchi — 2023 · AFI Fest
  • Perfect Days — Director: Wim Wenders — 2023 · AFI Fest
  • Ryuichi Sakamoto | OPUS — Director: 空音央 (name shown in original) — 2023 · AFI Fest
  • Monster（怪物 / Kaibutsu） — Director: Hirokazu Kore-eda — 2023 · North American premiere event
  • Suzume（すずめの戸締まり） — Director: Makoto Shinkai — 2023 · theatrical (Crunchyroll distribution)
  • Cowboy Bebop: The Movie（カウボーイビバップ 天国の扉） — Director: Shinichirō Watanabe — 2025 · theatrical
  • Summer Wars（サマーウォーズ） — Director: Mamoru Hosoda — 2025 · theatrical
  • 100 Meters（ひゃくえむ。） — Director: Kenji Iwaisawa — 2025 · theatrical
  • Spirited Away（千と千尋の神隠し） — Director: Hayao Miyazaki — 2025· theatrical
  • KOKUHO（国宝） — Director: Sang-Il Lee — 2025 · AFI Fest
  • RENTAL FAMILY（レンタル・ファミリー） — Director: HIKARI — 2025 · AFI Fest
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MAY

東京でWebマーケティング・ECコンサルに従事した後、2011年に長年の夢であった海外生活をすべくロサンゼルスに移住。現在はフリーランスとして日米2拠点生活+旅をしながら暮らす。
趣味：旅（特にロードトリップ）、街散策、キャンプ、国立公園巡り、イベント巡り（特にフェスと映画祭）、西海岸メイドの素敵なブランドを発掘すること。
A former web marketing and e-commerce consultant who worked in Tokyo, I moved to Los Angeles in 2011 to pursue my dream of living overseas. Now a freelance writer and consultant, I split my time between the U.S. and Japan while covering travel, festivals, film, and West Coast lifestyle. I love road trips, urban wandering, camping and national parks — and I’m always hunting for small, beautifully made West Coast brands.

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