Yahoo Finance Funimation Acquires Anime Hit ‘Knights of Sidonia’ Rights, Will Release Movie In U.S. And Stream TV Series
EXCLUSIVE: Funimation, which last year released the anime movie Demon Slayer: Mugen Train to great success at the global box office, has zeroed in on its next adventure. The company has set a September 13 release date for Knights of Sidonia: Love Woven in the Stars, the sci-fi anime space thriller based on the manga from Tsutomu Nihei.
In addition, Funimation has acquired TV rights to Netflix’s Knights of Sidonia anime series, and will begin streaming Season 1 and Season 2 beginning August 3 on its platform in the U.S., Canada, the UK and Ireland.
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Funimation will team with producer Polygon Pictures on the limited theatrical release, which will be in Japanese with English subtitles and an English dub. It is being billed billed as a thrilling conclusion of the series, set a thousand years in the future where an alien race threatens to wipe out the human race which lives on the massive spaceship the Sidonia after Earth is destroyed.
The series follows Nagate Tanikaze, training to become a Garde pilot and defend the Sidonia from a hostile alien species called Gauna. Ten years after Nagate repelled the Gauna forces, a final battle looms and love blossoms unexpectedly.
Here’s the trailer:
“Knights of Sidonia is a kick-ass adventure tale in the truest sense, with epic battles and romance woven in. We can’t wait to share the conclusion of their story with fans in theaters this September,” said Mitchel Berger, Funimation Global Group’s SVP Global Commerce. “And what better way to prepare for the final battle coming to theaters than reliving where it all began with the anime series streaming on Funimation. We’re thrilled to be working with Polygon Pictures to bring the franchise to fans.”
Produced by Polygon Pictures, Knights of Sidonia: Love Woven in the Stars is directed by Tadahiro ‘Tady’ Yoshihira and written by Sadayuki Murai and Tetsuya Yamada. Supervising director by Hiroyuki Seshita.
Japanese box office phenomenon Demon Slayer – Kimetsu No Yaiba – The Movie: Mugen Train was released by Funimation and Aniplex of America in April in the U.S. after it became the highest-grossing film in Japanese history, dethroning Spirited Away, which had held the title for 19 years.
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