The Apothecary Diaries Creator Breaks Silence on Upcoming Film

Based on Hyūganatsu’s beloved light novel, the anime adaptation of The Apothecary Diaries concluded in its second season in July last year. As the release date of the third season draws near, fans expect more information on the anime, especially another key visual and an official trailer. Season 3 will be released into two cours and the first one will premiere in October this year as part of the Fall 2026 lineup. The studio isn’t going to make fans wait longer, which is why Cour 2 will be released in Spring 2027, most likely in April. Additionally, the anime will also release its first feature film, which will follow an original story written by the author.

While the film will hit the Japanese theaters in December 2026, there’s no confirmation about an international theatrical release so far. Fans might expect an international release sometime in 2027. While the third season will be adapting Volumes 5 and 6 of the novel, details about the film are currently unknown, especially since it’s a completely new story. In a recent interview with Scrmbl, Hyūganatsu reveals exciting information about the highly anticipated film.

The Apothecary Diaries‘ Film Was Planned Early On

When asked about how the film came about, the author confirmed that the film was decided very early on. Although the author didn’t reveal exactly when the film was decided, she shared, “The anime team came to me with the proposal, and I said that was totally fine as long as I could write the outline for the story. I ended up sending them a pretty long draft with basically the entire plot and even a lot of the dialogue included! And then the anime writer turned it into a script, fixing some things along the way.”

Read Next

Solo Leveling Studio Reveals Exciting New Update Ahead of Season 3

The interviewer also asked if the film was planned during the anime’s first season, but Hyūganatsu said she would leave that up to his imagination. She also confirmed that the plot of the film is more like the first draft of the novel, which implies it will follow the story she wanted to tell the world during the initial phase of the novel’s release.

The Apothecary Diaries Creator Confirmed Doraemon Is The Inspiration Behind The Film

When asked about the plot of the film, Hyūganatsu jokingly says, “Hmm… Well, for me, movies mean Doraemon.” She adds, “You could say that. Doraemon is normally a slice of life, but in the movies, they always go on some crazy adventure. The setting is out of the ordinary, but the plot and characters are usually the same. So for the Apothecary Diaries movie, you might get to see the usually sedentary Maomao run around and get into some hijinks for a change.”

When the interviewer said that the idea is somewhat similar to Detective Conan, she replied, “Absolutely. The director and I actually talked about making it a little bit like Conan. We both agreed that we needed explosions for that.”

While the film awaits an official trailer and more updates, the latest information from the author implies that it’s going to be worth watching. The Apothecary Diaries is one of the most successful series of all time, with over 45 million copies of light novels and manga volumes in circulation.

The anime isn’t just popular among fans, but it’s also received critical acclaim ever since its debut. During this year’s Crunchyroll Awards, it won in the Best Drama and Best Main Character categories. Those who have caught up with the novel already know that the story is going to be more exciting from here on out, reaching new heights of popularity.

What do you think? Leave a comment below and join the conversation now in the ComicBook Forum!