A new key visual and three main cast members have been unveiled for the upcoming KILLTUBE anime film, during a panel at Anime Expo 2025 on July 5, 2025.
The film’s main voice cast will star Yui Tsukada as Musashi, Kengo Kawanishi as Kikuchiyo, and Ayane Sakura as Leonardo. All three characters are highlighted in a newly released short trailer and developmental preview video below.
A world premiere of a scene from the film was presented at a panel during this year’s Anime Expo, with director Kazuaki Kuribayashi (Kizumonogatari film trilogy web production assistant) and animation producer Fuko Noda in attendance.
The full production staff for KILLTUBE includes:
- • Scriptwriters: Saeri Natsuo, Ryo Takemura, Takenori Tokuyama
- • World View Setting: Yusuke Ujita
- • Technical Direction: CAVIAR’s Takumi Shiga , Masato Goto, Bivi, Frog96, Marusou
- • Character Design/Technical Direction: Nike Shimaguchi
- • Technical Direction/VFX Supervisor: Kassen’s Takahiro Ota
- • Music Director: Matsuza Katakumi
- • Music Composition: Takao Ogi
- • Concept Art Director: Wachajack’s Fujihiko Sawai
- • Concept Artist: Shusei Sasaya
- • Character Settings: ARuFa
- • Graphic Designer: Masataka Yoshida
- • Art Director: Takuya Sekikawa
- • CG Lead Animator: StudioNoco’s Daisuke Kaneko
- • CG Supervisor: Yūki Mizoguchi
- • CG Animation Supervisor: MontBlanc Pictures’s Satoshi Takeno
- • Background Modeling Supervisor: Barehand’s Jun Kazuse
- • CG Effects Supervisor: Tai Komatsu
- • Technical Artist: Hiroyuki Okada
- • CG Producer: Nanao Nakatsuka
VFX studio Kassen and artist collective Wachajack are credited as co-creators for the film, while STUDIO DOTOU is in charge of the animation production.
KILLTUBE is CHOCOLATE Inc’s first anime film production as part of its “108 Experiments” initiative to develop new ways to “create works, present them, and earn revenue to nurture original stories.” The company previously worked on the production and publicity for the Dark Gathering anime series, as well as planning the Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba’s Total Concentration exhibition. The film has a reported budget of 1 billion yen (US$6.8 million).
A 1-minute pilot of the film was released last April, when they also announced the film’s production.
The official synopsis of KILLTUBE is described by CHOCOLATE Inc. as:
In 2026, Japan continues its isolation under the Edo Shogunate. Amidst strict social hierarchies, three individuals, treated as scums of society, cross paths in a prison cell destined for a fateful encounter. They join the dueling video platform “KILLTUBE” to pursue fortune and to win their freedom in a segregational world.
In an era dubbed the “Age of Great Duels,” where one can amass immense wealth simply by defeating the strong, they face discrimination from samurais and merchants seeking power and authority. As they break the limits of convention and claim victory after victory, they rise in popularity, becoming decorated celebrities of their time.
However, just as they reach the height of their fame, they uncover the hidden truth behind “KILLTUBE”…
Source: press release
