Add as a preferred source on Google
Makoto Shinkai’s 2007 anime film ‘5 centimeters per second‘ gets a live-action adaptation in Fall 2025. The announcement was made via a new website launched for the live-action movie. Also, Suzume VA Hokuto Matsumura (Souta Munakata) will star as the male lead, Takaki Tono, in the live-action adaptation, and Yoshiyuki Okuyama, known for his music videos for Kenshi Yonezu, will be directing the film.
Hokuto Matsumura is a Japanese singer and actor, known as a member of the idol group SixTONES.
It’s a work that I’ve watched over and over again, so I feel a heavy responsibility every day. This book has had a profound impact on the lives of many people. Each fan has their own interpretation and world, and I am one of them. I was hesitant to take the first step, wondering whether someone as inexperienced as me should be involved in a live-action adaptation of such a work.
However, Director Okuyama and the rest of the production team have a deep admiration and love for the original work. And then, Shinkai-san said, “I’d like to see it with Hokuto-kun.” These words gave me the reason to take on this challenge with this team. This work was created by a team of people who have been influenced by and admired “5 Centimeters per Second.” I will take on this challenge with great respect for the original team and the fans.
(machine translation)
– Hokuto Matsumura
5 Centimeters Per Second Synopsis
5 centimeters per second refers to the pace at which cherry blossom petals fall. In the movie, it is used as a metaphor to show how people start together but slowly move on their separate ways.
Makoto Shinkai‘s ‘5 Centimeters Per Second’ follows the story of a boy, Takaki Tono, through middle school, high school, and adulthood. Takaki and Akari are elementary school friends, deeply fond of one another. In middle school years, they get separated as Akari’s parents relocate. Even in high school, Takaki couldn’t forego his feelings for Akari, though he was in a relationship with someone else. As an adult, he struggles with both his career and personal life, constantly seeking reminders of Akari, and is frustrated over how their relationship weakened over time.
Makoto Shinkai’s Comment on Live-Action Adaptation
The animated film “5 Centimeters per Second,” which I directed nearly 20 years ago, was a very immature and unfinished work.
But it is precisely because of its incompleteness that it has been loved for so long even today. I could never make, or recreate, a film like that, which was based solely on initial impulses – a yearning and fear for the unknown.
So I am very excited that Director Okuyama and his young and enthusiastic team are once again working on “5 Centimeters per Second.” I also feel the wonder of life when I have Matsumura Hokuto, my most trusted actor, take on the lead role. Please make it a film that you can only make now.
I look forward to its completion more than anyone else, and I am rooting for you.
(machine translation)
– Makoto Shinkai (Creator)
5 Centimeters Per Second Live-Action Staff
- Original Creator: Makoto Shinkai
- Director: Yoshiyuki Okuyama
- Script: Ayako Suzuki
- Production: Spoon
- Distribution: TOHO
Source: 5 centimeters per second live-action movie website
A self-proclaimed pseudo-hikikomori and anime content glutton, Bhavya spends his time immersed in the shonen and isekai worlds of anime, always on the hunt for the next series to binge or dissect. Having worked as a cinematographer and graphic designer, he brings a creative eye and technical expertise to his passion for storytelling.
Leave a Reply