Final 'Neon Genesis Evangelion' Movie Gets Release Date

After years of waiting, fans hoping to see the final Neon Genesis Evangelion film will unfortunately have to wait just a bit longer. A special teaser has been unveiled during Japanese screenings of Mamoru Hosoda's latest Mirai no Mirai, which revealed the film's new release date.

Studio Khara revealed that the final film, Evangelion: 3.0+1.0, is now scheduled for a release in Japanese theaters in 2020. First announced in 2012, this will make the overall production time for this film eight years.

Although the fourth movie has been in development for quite some time, fans haven't had many updates on it as the years pass and pile up. But there has been some hope as the studio behind the project, Studio Khara, recently updated fans on the film with a confirmation that the film was still in the works. Now that the film has a release date as well as preliminary staff members, fans can rest easier knowing that this film series will eventually come to a close.

The current staff for the fourth film includes Yusuke Matsui as CGI Animation Director, Takashi Suzuki as CGI Technical Director, Manabu Kobayashi as CGI Modeling Director, Masanori Iwasato and Ryoichi Nakama on CGI Animation, Tsubasa Takabe on Rigging, Nanae Hirabayashi, Hiroaki Yabe, Toyonari Yamada on Photography, Hiroyasu Kobayashi on Monitor Graphics, Syuchi Iseki on Key Animation, Kazuko Kikuchi on Color Setting, and Tatsuya Kushida on Background Art.

Despite its darker tone and theme, Neon Genesis Evangelion has become one of the most fruitful properties when it comes to merchandising. Recent examples include a bullet train bearing the images of the characters, and even a full fashion line based on the styles of the series. Those are just the recent examples too as the series has been put on everything from napkin and tissue dispensers to razor blades.

Neon Genesis Evangelion is a psychological drama by way of giant monster versus mech anime. The franchise debuted as a television series in 1995-1996 with two films following in 1997. Neon Genesis Evangelion: Death & Rebirth is an one-part drastically abridged retelling of the first 24 episodes of the television series, and one part new animation. The End of Evangelion, the second film, would incorporate some of Death & Rebirth's original animation and offer an alternate take on the original series' controversial final two episodes.

The series follows Shinji Ikari, who is recruited by his father to pilot the giant mech Evangelion in the fight against giant monsters known as Angels in the futuristic city of Tokyo-3. But Shinji is unwilling to bear this huge responsibility and is often conflicted about taking part in a war he was dragged into. This conflict of emotions leads to many introspective episodes that cover the range of religious, philosophical, and existential concepts.

This has also meant that series fans have eventually made a joke out of Shinji's refusal to pilot with the often uttered, "Get in the robot, Shinji." The series itself is known for its first abrupt finale during its first broadcast run featuring a complete collapse of its world.