Tomohiko Ito, who has directed hit shows like Erased and Sword Art Online, has just landed his next anime movie, and it looks thrilling. Ito’s new film will be another adaptation, although it won’t be based on a manga. Instead, the director will be adapting one of Japan’s best new novels by a renowned author.
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Tomohiko Ito is no stranger to adapting a good mystery story. While Sword Art Online leaned more heavily towards being an action series, Erased is still considered to be one of the best mystery animes in recent years. Ito’s new film will be more like the latter, as The Keeper of the Camphor Tree blends mystery with self-reflection and existentialism in a slower, internalized story. The news comes via The Keeper of the Camphor Tree‘s official website, which was recently published online.
Keigo Higashino’s The Keeper of the Camphor Tree Is Getting an Anime Movie
Tomohiko Ito’s new movie is an adaptation of the 2020 novel The Keeper of the Camphor Tree (Kusunoki no Bannin) by Japanese author Keigo Higashino. The first poster for the movie has been revealed. A-1 Pictures, who recently dominated the anime pop-culture landscape with Solo Leveling Season 2, will be animating the movie. Aniplex will be distributing the movie.
The announcement read, “Many of Higashino’s works have been adapted into films, but this is the first time it has been made into an anime. The story that is vividly depicted on the screen is of a mysterious camphor tree that is said to grant wishes if you pray to it, and the young man who becomes its guardian.”
The Keeper of the Camphor Tree is currently scheduled to release in 2026 in Japan. A US release date has yet to be revealed. “In 2026, Japan’s most talented creators and cast will come together to create a moving gem of a film guided by people’s ‘prayer,’” the announcement continued. Check out the first poster below…
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What Is The Keeper of the Camphor Tree About?
Keigo Higashino’s novel was a sensation when it was released in Japan in 2020, selling over 1 million copies. Unfortunately, US fans who want to read the book before the anime movie is released might not be able to. An English translation is currently in the works, but no publication date has been revealed.
The novel follows Reito Naoi, a man in his 20s who finds his life is slowly unravelling. After unjustly losing his job, he turns to a life of crime to survive. After being caught and arrested, Naoi is offered a mysterious contract to secure his freedom. The official synopsis continues, “In jail, Reito is paid an unexpected visit by a lawyer who offers to arrange for his release, if he complies with the wishes of the lawyer’s client. Seeing no alternative, Reito accepts and soon discovers that the lawyer’s client is his aunt. When Reito tells her that he has no plans for the future, she gives him an order: ‘What I want you to do is to guard a camphor tree.’ And thus begins Reito’s custodianship of a camphor tree standing on the grounds of a shrine — a camphor tree with a mysterious legend associated with it…”
