Twenty years after a quiet rural village first terrorized anime audiences, one of the genre's most enduring psychological horror franchises is coming back to where it all started.
Kadokawa confirmed the news during a live-streamed 20th anniversary special for the Higurashi: When They Cry television anime, announcing that production on a new series has been green-lit. Animation will once again be handled by Studio DEEN, the studio responsible for the franchise's original television run exactly 20 years ago.
Higurashi: When They Cry is a psychological horror franchise that began as a 2002 visual novel by 07th Expansion, set in the seemingly quiet rural village of Hinamizawa, where everyday life slowly unravels into cycles of paranoia, violence, and supernatural mystery tied to a local curse. The original anime aired for 26 episodes in 2006, followed by the 24-episode Kai sequel in 2007. The franchise eventually expanded well beyond those two cornerstone seasons.
Since then, it has spread across numerous media formats, including OVAs, manga, novels, a live-action film released in 2008, a television drama in 2016, and a stage play in 2015. The series later returned with Higurashi: When They Cry — GOU in 2020 and SOTSU in 2021, both produced by studio Passione rather than DEEN. This new project marks the original studio's return to the property.
Soichiro Hoshi reprises his role as Keiichi Maebara, while Mai Nakahara returns as Rena Ryugu. Satsuki Yukino will once again voice both Mion and Shion Sonozaki, Mika Kanai returns as Satoko Hojo, and Yukari Tamura reprises her role as Rika Furude. Having the same ensemble intact is no small thing. These performers have been the voices of Hinamizawa since the beginning, and their return lends the announcement a weight that goes beyond nostalgia.
The promotional video features newly recorded dialogue from Rena Ryugu, giving fans their first glimpse of the upcoming project. A main visual featuring a smiling Rena was also released, accompanied by the tagline "Welcome back, everyone." It's a deliberately simple image that lands harder than it has any right to.
A special logo commemorating the 20th anniversary of the television anime was also unveiled, featuring a daily tear-off calendar motif symbolizing the weight of two decades, highlighted by Rena's iconic hatchet.
The announcement was made during a special broadcast streamed on Niconico Live and YouTube on June 21, a date tied to the franchise's internal mythology as "Cotton Drifting Day," when tragedy traditionally strikes Hinamizawa. Picking that specific date was a deliberate creative choice, and the community noticed.
Fan response across anime forums and social platforms has been immediate and substantial. Further details on the project's story direction and premiere window have not yet been confirmed, leaving substantial room for speculation ahead of what is shaping up to be one of the more closely watched anime announcements of the year.
Check topics and authors from this story to see more stories like this in your personalized feed and receive updates when new work is published.
