The director of 2016’s hit film Your Name, Makoto Shinkai has officially announced plans to release his next big film as soon as possible. Over the past decade, Makoto Shinkai has become a huge name in the anime world. His biggest film, Your Name, caught the attention of anime fans worldwide, and his fame grew after that with projects such as Weathering with You and Suzume.

The director shared a major announcement for his 2025 plans on X on December 31, 2024. Translated into English, the post reads: “Happy New Year! 2024 was a year I spent working on my new movie. It’s a great honor to create a new world that no one has seen before from scratch alongside my colleagues. I’ll do my best to announce it in some way this year. I hope 2025 will be a peaceful year for us all.”

No release date has been announced yet, however, it’s apparent the film is almost complete as Shinkai said he plans to announce the title and concept as soon as possible.

The biggest takeaway from the announcement is that the director is sticking to his roots in original stories. All of his films have been original animated stories, which has made Shinkai a powerhouse of original animated storytelling. Fans will surely be excited to see the new world he will create.

Shinkai also tends to blend genres such as sci-fi, romance, and fantasy. So it makes it hard for fans to guess what direction this new film will take. No matter what, Shinkai’s upcoming film will surely be one of the most anticipated films for anime fans as his filmography has solidified his position as one of the greats in anime filmmaking, alongside the iconic Hayao Miyazaki.

Shinkai’s latest film Suzume is available to stream on Crunchyroll.