The Junji Ito Masterpiece Collection panel revealed at Anime Expo on Friday Strange: Junji Ito’s Tales for Sleepless Nights (Strange -Itō Junji no Yoru mo Nemurenu Kimyō na Hanashi-), the live-action omnibus series based on 13 manga stories by Junji Ito, will stream on the HBO Max service internationally this fall.

Anime Expo 2026 screened the first two episodes for the series on Friday.

The series premiered in the TV Tokyo channel’s “Drama 24” programming block on July 3 at 24:12 (effectively, July 4 at 12:12 a.m.), and will premiere on BS TV Tokyo on July 12.

The adapted stories include “Lovesickness,” “The Mansion of Phantom Pain,” “The Rib Woman,” “The Bully,” “Face Thief,” “A Father’s Love,” “Memory,” “In Old Records,” “Penpal,” “Further Tales of Oshikiri,” “Earthbound,” and “Tomio: Red Turtleneck.” All of these stories have been translated into English in various releases except for “In Old Records,” which is featured in the Junji Ito “Collection” anime.

The series’ title is an apparent reference to the original name of Asahi Shimbun‘s Nemuki+ magazine (Nemurenu Yoru no Kimyō Na Hanashi), where many of Ito’s works appeared.

The cast includes (top row, left to right in the image below):

(second row, left to right):

(third row, left to right):

• Episode 9 “The Rib Woman” – Nagisa Saitō as Yuri
• Episode 11 “Further Tales of Oshikiri” (also based on “Penpal”) – Jun Saitō as Tōru Oshikiri
• Episode 12 “Lingering Farewell” – Yuri Tsunematsu as Akiko

Atsuhiro Yamada, Yūta Shimotsu, and Ryōta Kondō are directing the series, with scripts overseen by Daisuke Hosaka (Sadako 3D 2, BELA: Humanoid Monster). Tatsurō Inamoto (Trigun Stampede, Pluto, Supernatural: The Anime Series) is also a scriptwriter on the project.

South Korean group IVE is performing the series’ opening theme song “Jigsaw.” 10CM, the musical act that now consists of South Korean singer-songwriter Jeong-yeol Kwon, performs the ending theme song “The Darkest Night.”

Pan-Asian film and entertainment studio Through the Lens Entertainment and horror brand Fangoria Studios are collaborating to produce films based on Ito’s “The Mystery of the Haunted House” Parts 1 and 2, and “Bloodsucking Darkness.”

Junji Ito Maniac: Japanese Tales of the Macabre, a new anime based on 20 different Ito stories, debuted worldwide on Netflix in January 2024. Ito’s Uzumaki manga also inspired a four-episode anime mini-series that premiered on Toonami in September 2024.

Junji Ito “Collection”, a previous television anime of manga by Ito, also adapted stories from the Itō Junji Kessaku-shū collection, as well as the Fragments of Horror book. The anime premiered in January 2018 and had 12 episodes. Crunchyroll streamed the series with English subtitles as it aired in Japan, and Funimation streamed an English dub. The anime included an adaptation of Ito’s Tomie story on its second and third DVD sets.

Source: E-mail correspondence

GKIDS announced during its panel at Anime Expo on Sunday the following home video releases as GKIDS Store exclusives.

GKIDS will release a 4K UHD Collector’s Edition for the anime film of Fujimoto’s “Look Back” one-shot manga on September 8.

GKIDS describes the story:

Popular, outgoing Fujino is celebrated by her classmates for her funny comics in the class newspaper. One day, her teacher asks her to share the space with Kyomoto, a truant recluse whose beautiful artwork sparks a competitive fervor in Fujino. What starts as jealousy transforms when Fujino realizes their shared passion for drawing.

The anime film opened in theaters in Japan in June 2024. It ranked at #2 in terms of ticket sales (but #1 in weekend earnings) in its opening weekend. The film sold 135,000 tickets and earned 227 million (about US$1.40 million) in its first three days.

GKIDS screened the film in October 2024 in North America. The film earned US$688,253 at the U.S. box office in its opening weekend.

GKIDS will release the live-action film adaptation in theaters in 2026 in the U.S., Canada, the U.K., and Ireland.

The film is currently in post-production and will open in Japan in 2026.

The company will ship a 4K UHD Collector’s Edition for the 4K remaster of Mamoru Oshii and Yoshitaka Amano‘s 1985 original video anime Angel’s Egg (Tenshi no Tamago) on September 22.

GKIDS describes the release:

In an underwater city, a young girl takes care of a large egg she holds carefully in her arms. A boy with a gun arrives in search of a bird he saw in his dream. At first, it seems as if feelings of sympathy are developing between the two.

Forty years after the film’s original release, GKIDS is proud to present an all-new 4K restoration of the film, supervised by director Mamoru Oshii.

The company screened the remaster in a two-day run in North America in November 2025.

The remaster is based on a new scan of a 35mm film negative of the anime.

The Angel’s Egg original video anime (OVA) debuted in Japan in 1985. Oshii directed the OVA at Studio DEEN. Oshii and Yoshitaka Amano conceived the story, and Oshii wrote the screenplay and directed. Amano also handled the art direction. Hiroshi Hasegawa, Masao Kobayashi, Mitsunori Miura, and Yutaka Wada produced the film. Yoshihiro Kanno composed the music.

Hideaki Anno‘s 1998 live-action film LOVE & POP will get a Blu-ray Disc release on October 6.

GKIDS describes the story:

July 1997. Tokyo schoolgirl Hiromi and her friends spend the summer going on dates with older men for money. Armed with only a cellphone, Hiromi sets out to date her way to ¥128,000 in order to purchase an expensive topaz ring before the mall closes for the day.

Based on the novel by Ryū Murakami, LOVE & POP is the live action feature debut from Hideaki Anno, chief director of EVANGELION Series, one of the most celebrated anime works of all time. The film is radical in its stylistic approach to teenage ennui, taking to the seedy streets of Shibuya with handheld digicams, distorted lenses, and a barrage of unconventional camera angles. Criminally underseen for years, LOVE & POP remains a singular portrait of Japanese youth coming of age in the approach to the 21st century.

The company screened Hideaki Anno‘s 1998 live-action film LOVE & POP in North American theaters in February 2025.

The film is based on Ryū Murakami’s 1996 Love and Pop: Topaz II novel, published by Gentosha. The film was Anno’s first feature-length live-action film, which he directed after the first Neon Genesis Evangelion anime and before Shin Godzilla and Shin Kamen Rider.

The company will release the 4K restoration of director Nobuhiro Yamashita‘s 2005 Linda Linda Linda film in a 4K UHD Collector’s Edition on August 25.

GKIDS describes the story:

For Kei, Kyoko, and Nozomi, their dream of playing the final high school concert together is dashed when their lead vocalist quits the band. Desperate, they recruit the very first person they see: Korean exchange student Song, played by Doona Bae (THE HOST, BROKER), whose comprehension of Japanese is limited at best. It’s a race against time as the group struggles to learn three songs in three days for the festival’s rock concert.

LINDA LINDA LINDA is an effervescent, tenderhearted snapshot of youth about the unparalleled joy of jamming out with your friends. The soundtrack fuses bangers from iconic Japanese bands THE BLUE HEARTS and Base Ball Bear with original music composed by James Iha of the Smashing Pumpkins. The beloved classic from Nobuhiro Yamashita (GHOST CAT ANZU) is acknowledged by many as one of the greatest Japanese films of the 21st century. In celebration of its 20th anniversary, the utterly charming and timeless classic returns with an all-new 4K restoration.

The company screened the remaster of the film in celebration of the 20th anniversary at the Tribeca Film Festival, which ran from June 2025 in New York City.

The film originally debuted in Japan in 2005, and Viz Pictures released the film on DVD in 2007. The film follows an all-girls high school rock band, who must recruit a new lead vocalist before their high school festival in three days.

GKIDS also confirmed that it will screen a 4K remaster of Makoto Shinkai‘s your name. anime film in theaters on August 14 for its 10th anniversary. The film will get a new 4K UHD Steelbook and Blu-ray Disc home video releases on August 25.

Source: GKIDS‘ Anime Expo panel (Alex Mateo)