Crunchyroll has picked up The Apothecary Diaries: The Late Lady’s Treasure, the first feature film in the franchise. The company announced the acquisition on Thursday, and Crunchyroll and Sony Pictures Entertainment will handle distribution together.
The deal covers North America and most of the world. Asia is the main exception, while India is included. Theatrical dates for the international rollout have not been set yet, so the only confirmed premiere is the Japanese one on December 11, 2026.
Norihiro Naganuma, who directed the TV anime, returns to direct the film, and TOHO animation STUDIO is handling animation. The story is new. Original author Natsu Hyuga wrote the mystery for the movie instead of adapting one of the novels, which matters to anyone who has already read ahead.
What the film is about
Jinshi is given an odd order. He has to honor the final wish of a concubine who died five years ago by returning her remains to her homeland. When he examines the body, it is in perfect condition, as though she had never died at all. To work out why, he brings Maomao with him to Binan-shu, a southern province ruled by the Bi clan.
They arrive in a city built on water. Maomao gets distracted by herbs and medicines she has never seen before, but the mood is tense. Pirates are hunting a treasure their late leader hid somewhere nearby, and on the day of the concubine’s funeral something goes badly wrong.
Where the franchise stands
The Apothecary Diaries started as a light novel by Natsu Hyuga with illustrations by Toko Shino, published by Shufunotomo. Two manga adaptations followed: one written by Itsuki Nanao and drawn by Nekokurage, and a separate one by Minoji Kurata. J-Novel Club publishes the novels in English, and Square Enix handles the manga. The premise is simple enough to explain in one line. Maomao is a sharp young apothecary who gets sold into palace service and ends up helping Jinshi, the imperial official who keeps pulling her into trouble.
The film is not the only project moving. A live-action series is set for 2028, and a first console game arrives in early 2027 with an original story supervised by Hyuga. There is also an anime adaptation in the works for The Failure at God School, a manga with a story by Hyuga.
A theatrical release changes the reach
Until now, the series has lived on television and streaming, where audiences outside Japan mostly met it through Crunchyroll simulcasts and dubs. A feature film with a global theatrical push is a different kind of bet. Sony putting its distribution arm behind the movie signals how much the company expects from the property outside Japan.
Streaming numbers alone would not justify theater screens. The fact that Crunchyroll and Sony are willing to put it in cinemas suggests the show’s international audience is large enough to fill them, at least for a limited run.
The one gap in the announcement is timing. Fans in the United States and Europe now know the film is coming to their region, but not when.
For more on the show, see our coverage of the Season 3 trailer and its October 2 premiere, and the Universal Studios Japan attraction opening in February 2027.
Source: Anime Corner
Featured image: The Apothecary Diaries: The Late Lady’s Treasure film visual, via Crunchyroll / Anime Corner.
