This Summer, fans of the esteemed romance series Fruits Basket may be able to see the conclusion to Tohru Honda’s story on the silver screen. Crunchyroll has announced that it will be distributing Fruits Basket: Prelude in select theaters in the United States and Canada. This event will mark the first time the film is premiering outside of Japan.
Fruits Basket: Prelude is going back in time before Tohru became entangled in the Soma family dynamic and ultimately broke their curse. This prequel movie takes a deep dive into the unseen relationship between Tohru’s parents, Kyoko and Katsuya Honda, showcasing their blossoming romance from their high school days to how Katsuya helped Kyoko get past her troubled beginnings. Fruits Basket is a story about healing and fans are excited to see how things were before it all began.
Based on the extremely beloved award-winning Manga by Natsuki Takaya, Fruits Basket was published in Hakusensha from 1998 to 2006. Before there was the 2019 anime adaptation, of which the upcoming film is a continuation, there was a shorter 26-episode adaptation directed by Akitaro Daichi that came out in 2001. The 2019 reboot, which has three seasons, was directed Yoshihide Ibata and animated by TMS Entertainment and 8PAN, who have previously worked together on another anime series, Dr. Stone.
The voice cast includes Manaka Iwami as the kind-hearted protagonist Tohru, with Laura Bailey reprising her 2001 role in the English dub. Miyuki Sawashiro is onboard as Kyoko, with Lydia Mackay in the English dub; Yoshimasa Hosoya lends his voice to Katsuya with J. Michael Tatum in the English dub. Other cast members include Yūma Uchida as Kyo and Jerry Jewell in the English dub. The script for the prequel movie was written by Taku Kishimoto, while the character design was by Masaru Shindo. Tamako Kamiyama served as the art director, and Masaru Yokoyama composed the music.
With a total run time of 88 minutes, the film debuted in Japan on February 18, 2022. Now, it will be coming to North America on June 25, 28, and 29, both subbed and dubbed. Tickets will be going on sale this Friday, June 3. The English dubbed version of Fruits Basket: Prelude is also coming to the United Kingdom, premiering July 20 with tickets available from June 25.
If you’d like to catch up with the romantic comedy with a pinch of trauma and tragedy, the three seasons of the 2019 adaptation are presently available for streaming on Crunchyroll.