SAO, currently in theaters as a blockbuster hit, has already decided on its next theatrical version! Sword Art Online - Progressive - Scherzo in the Dark of the Underworld" will be released in 2022!

The "Sword Art Online - Progressive - Aria: A Night Without Stars" was released in theaters on October 30, and the next movie version of the "SAO" series is now underway in preparation for the 10th anniversary of the TV series.

The "SWORD ART ONLINE" series of novels by Reki Kawahara won the 15th Dengeki Novel Award (Grand Prize). The story of the main character Kirito, which takes place in the next generation VRMMORPG "Sword Art Online," has become a huge hit with a total of over 26 million copies sold worldwide as of 2021.

⇒The story of the beginning of "SAO" has evolved over the past 10 years! Interview with Inori Minase as Fukasumi Usazawa/Mito in "Sword Art Online Progressive: Aria of the Hoshinaki Yoru"!

⇒ Click here for the screening schedule of the anime film.

Sword Art Online Progressive: Aria: A Night Without Stars", a new "Aincrad" version from Asuna's point of view, was released on October 30, 2021, and was the No.1 box-office hit on the weekend!

The next movie version has been announced for the 10th anniversary of the TV anime series next year. It will be titled "Sword Art Online the Movie: Progressive - Scherzo in the Darkness" and will be released in 2022.
Please look forward to further news!

Sword Art Online the Movie - Progressive - Aria on a Starless Night" is currently in theaters!

The two-day period from October 30 (Sat.) to 31 (Sun.), 2021 drew 225,221 people and grossed 349,340,215 yen, ranking first in the weekend box-office revenue ranking. With 196 theaters, 233 screens (including IMAX), and a per-screen average of 1.5 million yen, the film had a strong start to its run.

In addition to Dolby Atmos and "Full Dive Sound" screenings, in which the sound was adjusted to suit each theater, there was a great response to the first IMAX 12-channel sound screening of a Japanese film and various other sound facilities.

On SNS, there were many comments such as "The SAO movie was divine. I knew the original story, but it was really interesting!" and "The boss battle was so different from the TV version! and "It was different from the TV anime, and it was from Asuna's point of view, so it was really interesting! The film is already attracting repeat viewers.
The IMAX screening, the first in the series, was also well received with comments such as, "The sound of the slashes is amazing, and the realism is so powerful and realistic, and the sound of SAO Kajiura flows freely, it's just great! The sound of SAO Kajiura was played without any hesitation, and it was just great!

Film Information]
■ "SWORD ART ONLINE THE MOVIE - Progressive - Aria on a Starless Night

In theaters from October 30, 2021 (Sat)!

<Cast
Kirito: Sadaaki Matsuoka
Asuna Yuki: Haruka Tomatsu
Mito / Usagiwawa Fukasumi: Minase Inori
Klein: Hiroaki Hirata
Egil: Hiroki Yasumoto
Shirika: Rina Hidaka
Diavel: Hiyama Shuyuki
Kibao: Tomokazu Seki

＜Staff
Original story and story idea : Reki Kawahara ("Dengeki Bunko")
Original illustration and character design idea : abec
Director : Ayako Kono
Action Director & Monster Design: Yasuyuki Kai
Character Design & Chief Animation Director: Kento Toya
Sub-character Design: Aya Akizuki, Tomomi Ishikawa, Keisuke Watanabe
Prop Design: Hisashi Higashijima
Art Director: Yusa Ito
Art Setup: Akihiro Hirasawa
Color Design: Naomi Nakano
Director of Photography: Yuki Oshima
CG Director: Kengo Oda, Hiroshi Nakajima
2D Works: Yohei Miyahara, Kaori Seki
Editing: Kiyoshi Hirose
Music: Yuki Kajiura
Sound Director: Miwa Iwanami
Sound Effects: Yasumasa Koyama
Sound Production: Sonirudo
Produced by EGG FIRM and Straight Edge
Production: A-1 Pictures
Distributor: Aniplex
Production: SAO-P Project

<Music
Ouke" LiSA (SACRA MUSIC)
Lyrics: LiSA / Composition: Ayase / Arrangement: Ryo Eguchi

＜Story
This is the story of "Flash" and "Black Swordsman" before they were called by their names.
Asuna Yuki, a girl in her third year of junior high school who was accidentally covered in Nerve Gear that day, was originally a girl who had nothing to do with Internet games.
On November 6, 2022, the world's first VRMMORPG 《Sword Art Online》 was launched.
However, the players, who had not yet cooled off from the excitement of logging in, were suddenly deprived of the means to log out by the game master, and became trapped in the game world. The game master tells them, "This is a game, but it is not play.
This is a game, but it is not a game.
Death in the game is directly connected to death in reality.
Hearing this, all the players were confused, and the game was filled with screaming. One of them was Asuna, who, not understanding the rules of the world, set out to conquer "Aincrad," a floating castle of steel with no visible top.
As she survives in a world where death is a fact of life and death is a fact of life, a fateful "encounter" comes her way. And then, farewell.
She is tossed about by the "reality before her eyes," but the one who appears before her, fighting with all her might, is the lone swordsman, Kirito...

＜Introduction
Reki Kawahara, the author of the original manga, has created a completely new animated film version of "Aincrad" from Asuna's point of view.
This is a game, but not a game.
Game over is directly connected to death in real life. Sword Art Online, the death game that started it all, opens anew on the theater screen.

(C)2020 Reki Kawahara/KADOKAWA/SAO-P Project