The official website and X (formerly Twitter) account of The Summer Hikaru Died anime revealed a new key visual featuring the main characters, Hikaru Indo and Yoshiki Tsujinaka, on Thursday, March 20, 2025. The anime is set to premiere in Summer 2025, with CygamesPictures producing the series. While the exact release date remains undisclosed, the series will be broadcast on Nippon Television and streamed worldwide on Netflix.
The Summer Hikaru Died anime adapts the supernatural horror manga by Mokumokuren, which has been serialized on Kadokawa Shoten’s Young Ace Up site since August 2021. As of now, six tankobon volumes have been published.
Key Visual and Character Descriptions
The newly released key visual shows Hikaru and Yoshiki standing under a bright blue sky in Kubitachi village, the story’s primary setting. The visual conveys an eerie tone, with Hikaru standing behind Yoshiki and watching him ominously. The tagline reads, “My friend who came back, it was something I didn’t know,” hinting at the story’s supernatural element.
In addition to the key visual, character visuals for Hikaru and Yoshiki were also revealed. Hikaru is described as a being that appeared six months ago after Hikaru went missing in the mountains of a forbidden area. While it looks and sounds like Hikaru, it is something else entirely, exhibiting a childlike sense of curiosity and innocence.
Yoshiki is depicted as a high school student from Kubitachi village. Although he knows that his childhood friend Hikaru has been replaced by an unknown entity, he continues to interact with him, grappling with the conflict between fear and loyalty.
Production and Cast Details
Directed and composed by Ryohei Takeshita at CygamesPictures, The Summer Hikaru Died stars Shuichiro Umeda as Hikaru Indo and Chiaki Kobayashi as Yoshiki Tsujinaka. Yuichi Takahashi serves as the chief animation director and character designer, while Masanobu Hiraoka, known for his work on Chainsaw Man, is listed as the key animator. More cast and staff details are expected to be announced closer to the premiere.
The Summer Hikaru Died anime will premiere on Nippon Television in Summer 2025. The series will be available for streaming worldwide on Netflix, with Japanese audiences also able to watch it on ABEMA.
Ahead of the broadcast, a special booth for The Summer Hikaru Died will be held at AnimeJapan 2025 on March 22 and 23, 2025, at the Kadokawa Booth. Original goods will be available for purchase, and the series will have a dedicated session on the event’s Green Stage on March 23, 2025, where the main voice actors will make an appearance.
Plot Overview
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Based on the original manga, The Summer Hikaru Died follows the story of two childhood friends, Hikaru and Yoshiki, living in the peaceful village of Kubitachi. Their ordinary lives are shattered when Hikaru goes missing in the mountains and later returns as something different. Yoshiki soon realizes that the being resembling Hikaru is no longer the friend he once knew. The story explores Yoshiki’s internal conflict as he navigates the unsettling mystery surrounding his friend.
