Anime film Labyrinth reveals January 2026 premiere with 2nd Teaser Visuals

On Friday, August 29, 2025, the official website for the original animation film Labyrinth streamed its second teaser trailer, announcing one more cast member and a January 1, 2026, release date.

Anime director Shōji Kawamori is directing the film, this being his first feature-length animated film not based on an existing franchise at Studio SANZIGEN. Kawamori is best known as a key creative planner on The Super Dimension Fortress Macross anime.

New original anime film Labyrinth premieres on January 1, 2026

As mentioned earlier, on Friday, August 29, 2025, the official website for Shōji Kawamori's anime film Labyrinth released the second trailer, confirming a January 1, 2026, premiere.

The teaser also announced a new cast member: Takuto Teranishi, known for Ramen D Matsudaira Kunimitsu and Your Lie in April stage play, makes his voice-acting debut as Suguru Kagami. Kagami is portrayed as a young, internationally renowned entrepreneur conducting college research on directly connecting the human brain to smartphones.

Other voice-acting casts who were previously revealed: Atarashii Gakkō!'s pop group member Suzuka in her voice-acting debut role as protagonist Shiori Maezawa and her other self, Shiori@Revolution. Taizō Harada as Komori, Aoi Itō as Kirara Kurashina, and Jun Saitō as Kento Yamada.

The film follows Shiori Maezawa, an ordinary high school girl who finds herself in a deserted parallel world of Yokohama after her smartphone suddenly breaks. Upon checking, she finds photos of herself on her social media accounts that she does not remember posting. To stop her other self from going out of control, Shiori attempts to escape from her smartphone's strange labyrinth.

While Kawamori is directing the Labyrinth anime at Studio SANZIGEN, Risa Ebata (Macross Frontier, AKB0048) is designing the characters, and Taichi Hashimoto (Listeners, Gate Keepers 21) is credited for writing the scripts. Kawamori stated in a comment that the film is born from the idea that the smartphones that people use are "another self," which accumulates data such as personal information.

Kawamori's other works include Aquarion, AKB0048, and Arjuna. He also served as chief director for Jūshinki Pandora at Satelight Studios, where he was a board director. Additionally, he has contributed mechanical design work to Patlabor: The Movie, Patlabor 2: The Movie, Eureka Seven, Outlaw Star, Ghost in the Shell, and more.

He is also credited as the original creator of The Vision of Escaflowne, Basquash!, and Nobunaga the Fool. Over his career, Kawamori has worked in several anime productions as a director, screenwriter, mechanical designer, and storyboard writer.

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About the author

Ribhu Ghosh is an Anime Journalist at Sportskeeda. With a degree in Journalism from the University of Calcutta, his deep-rooted passion for anime and manga led him to pursue a career in writing about the same. Along with his 6 years of experience as an illustrator and digital artist for various overseas anime studios and companies, he also aspires to write storylines. Ribhu's creative journey has been profoundly influenced by renowned mangakas such as Sui Ishida, Masashi Kishimoto, Kohei Horikoshi, and Koyoharu Gotouge.

Ribhu's enthusiasm for storytelling and illustration is evident in his meticulous approach to reporting. He values accuracy and relevance and always prioritizes thorough research. When he's not writing, Ribhu enjoys illustrating, playing chess, and engaging in outdoor activities like badminton. His diverse interests extend to music, cooking, reading, and gaming, all of which complement his passion for the entertainment and Popular Culture division.

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Edited by Ribhu Ghosh