Bunny Girl Senpai fans, it’s time to take a seat and prepare for the end of Hajime Kamoshida’s Rascal Does Not Dream novel series. Kadokawa announced a new anime film adapting the Rascal Does Not Dream of a Dear Friend arc, which is set to release sometime in 2026. The film is a sign of the end of the story since it adapts Volume 15 of the light novel series–the last book in the series.
A Final Case of Adolescence Syndrome
Aniplex dropped a teaser trailer for the film on YouTube earlier this week — it’s pretty short at only 15 seconds, but it is a satisfying resolution for longtime fans of the series. Yen Press sums up the film’s story as follows: “Faced with the truth about Miori and Touko Kirishima, Sakuta must make a choice. This will be his final case of Adolescence Syndrome!”
Studio CloverWorks will animate the film yet again, and Yen-On will publish the English novel for Rascal Does Not Dream of a Dear Friend, which is set for release in January 2026.
The Rascal Saga: From Light Novel to Global Hit
Rascal Does Not Dream is a supernatural drama novel that wrapped up its final volume almost a year ago on October 10, 2024. The series, written by Hajime Kamoshida, is a hit success with currently over 3 million copies in circulation to date. The manga adaptation has been published by Yen Press since August 2020, and is still in progress.
The TV anime saga started with Rascal Does Not Dream of Bunny Girl Senpai back in October 2018, which adapted the first five light-novel volumes into a 13-episode season. The season is animated by CloverWorks and produced by Aniplex. It’s not too late to give the anime a watch, as the season is available on Crunchyroll and other streaming services.
The Series Comes to a Long-Awaited Close
The upcoming film follows the release of the Rascal Does Not Dream of Santa Claus, which adapts the University Student Arc. The anime came out earlier this year on July 5, and it’s streaming on Crunchyroll in Japanese dub or English dub as well. Other films in the franchise include Rascal Does Not Dream of a Dreaming Girl, Rascal Does Not Dream of a Sister Venturing Out, and Rascal Does Not Dream of a Knapsack Kid. The last two did extremely well upon release in Japan, selling over 119,000 tickets in their opening weekend and making over 160 million yen in their opening weekend.
Expect to see familiar voice acting talents return in the film next year, such as Kaito Ishikawa as Sakuta Azusagawa, Asami Seto as Mai Sakurajima, Reina Ueda as Miniskirt Santa/Touko Kirishima, and Manaka Iwami as Miori Mito.
As of right now, Dear Friend does not have a release date, but now’s the perfect time to watch the teaser and revisit the many films as part of the series.
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