ghost – end of night, the original theatrical anime from Sonny Boy director Shingo Natsume and studio Madhouse, just got its biggest info drop yet. On Tuesday, Bandai Namco Filmworks released the film's main trailer, a second key visual, five additional cast members, and the theme song — "life" by alternative rock band Hitsujibungaku — ahead of the film's February 11, 2027 opening in Japan, as reported by Anime News Network, Crunchyroll News and MyAnimeList News.

"Is it me who's gone mad, or the world?"

That's the tagline attached to the new trailer, per Crunchyroll News — a fair mission statement for the whole project.

The premise

Set in a near future where labor is no longer necessary, the film follows Nike (also romanized Neekei), a solitary girl who keeps searching for something "real" while resisting the order of a complacent, contented society. Per Crunchyroll, she's drawn to a star born from the remembrance of a dead person, which leads her to Mass, a man marked by loss — and a fragile, undefined bond forms between them. The film already had its world premiere at the 59th Sitges International Fantastic Film Festival in Spain on October 9.

Who's who in the new cast

The five additions, per Anime News Network:

  • Takeo Otsuka as Bora, Nike's predecessor, who loves beautiful things
  • Kazuhiro Yamaji as Ahab, an elderly homeless man who hates the world
  • Yuki Shin as Structure, a man who holds special privileges like Nike's
  • Hina Yomiya as Mike, a girl afraid of being "selected"
  • Atsumi Tanezaki as Mass' son

They join leads Mayu Hotta (Nike) and Issey Takahashi (Mass).

The pedigree

This is an auteur project through and through. Natsume — whose résumé spans One-Punch Man, Space Dandy, ACCA: 13-Territory Inspection Dept. and Sonny Boy — writes and directs, working from an original story he developed with Tomohiro Suzuki, Bandai Namco Filmworks and Madhouse. Manga creator Natsume Ono (ACCA 13, House of Five Leaves) drew the original character designs, with longtime collaborator Norifumi Kugai adapting them for animation. The staff list runs deep: Ozora Kimishima composes the score, Shoji Hata directs sound, and the crew includes a dedicated costume stylist and even a tattoo designer, per ANN.

The music angle is unusually rich too: Hitsujibungaku isn't just doing the theme — the band performs six songs for the film in total, including the insert song "Sugar," per Crunchyroll News.

What's next

The film opens in Japanese theaters on February 11, 2027. No international release date has been announced yet, but with a Sitges premiere already behind it and Bandai Namco Filmworks distributing, a Western rollout announcement feels like a matter of when, not if.