The official Twitter account for the anime film adaptation of Reki Kawahara and abec's Sword Art Online: Progressive light novels series, titled Sword Art Online the Movie: The Aria of the Night Without Stars, has released a new trailer previewing the first appearance of the Game Master and his declaration that the death games have begun, seen from Asuna's point of view.
LiSA will be performing the film's theme song titled, "Yuke." LiSA wrote the lyrics, while Ayase from YOASOBI composed the song and Ryo Eguchi arranged it.
Yoshitsugu Matsuoka and Haruka Tomatsu are returning as Kirito and Asuna in the voice cast.
Aniplex and Funimation describe the film as:
This is a tale of the time before “Lightning Flash” and “The Black Swordsman” were known by those names…
The day that she happened to don the NerveGear, Asuna Yuuki was a third-year middle school student who’d never even touched an online game before.
On November 6, 2022, the world’s first VRMMORPG, Sword Art Online, is officially launched. But the players, still euphoric over having logged in, suddenly find themselves trapped inside the game when the Game Master deprives them of any way to log out.
The Game Master then gives them this warning “This may be a game, but it’s not something you play.” If a player dies in-game, they die in the real world.
Hearing this, all of the players panic, and pandemonium reigns.
One of those players is Asuna, but despite not yet knowing the rules of this world, she sets off to conquer the floating iron castle, Aincrad, whose peak is too high to be seen.
As the days go by in this world where death is never very far away, she has a fateful encounter. And then, a parting…
Though she’s at the mercy of the reality before her eyes, Asuna fights on with all her might, until someone appears before her: the aloof swordsman, Kirito…
Sword Art Online the Movie: The Aria of the Night Without Stars is set to premiere in Japan on October 30, 2021.
The English Twitter account for Sword Art Online has announced that the film will premiere in the United States and Canada on December 3, 2021. Tickets go on sale November 5.
Bryce Papenbrook and Cherami Leigh will reprise their roles as Kirito and Asuna, respectively, in the dub.
NEW TRAILER:
The film will open in over 40 countries and territories around the world.
Postcards featuring Kirito, Asuna, and Mito will be given out at Japanese theaters, each drawn by abec, the original illustrator and character designer for the novel series. Each theatergoer will be given one card at random.
CHARACTER VISUALS:
KIRITO
ASUNA:
MITO:
NEW CAST ANNOUNCEMENT:
Inori Minase as Mito
Ayako Kawano is directing the film at A-1 Pictures, and Kento Toya is designing the characters. Yasuyuki Kai is serving as action director, and Yuki Kajiura is returning to compose the music.
MAIN VISUAL:
The Sword Art Online: Progressive novel series is a retelling of the events of the Aincard arc of Sword Art Online, started nearly a decade after author Reki Kawahara wrote the original web novel.
Aniplex and Funimation describe the film as:
This is a tale of the time before “Lightning Flash” and “The Black Swordsman” were known by those names…
The day that she happened to don the NerveGear, Asuna Yuuki was a third-year middle school student who’d never even touched an online game before.
On November 6, 2022, the world’s first VRMMORPG, Sword Art Online, is officially launched. But the players, still euphoric over having logged in, suddenly find themselves trapped inside the game when the Game Master deprives them of any way to log out.
The Game Master then gives them this warning “This may be a game, but it’s not something you play.” If a player dies in-game, they die in the real world.
Hearing this, all of the players panic, and pandemonium reigns.
One of those players is Asuna, but despite not yet knowing the rules of this world, she sets off to conquer the floating iron castle, Aincrad, whose peak is too high to be seen.
As the days go by in this world where death is never very far away, she has a fateful encounter. And then, a parting…
Though she’s at the mercy of the reality before her eyes, Asuna fights on with all her might, until someone appears before her: the aloof swordsman, Kirito…