Funimation released two new visuals of the upcoming Fruits Basket 2019 anime adaptation on Monday. The first picture (above) shows Tohru and the Sohmas in human form while the 2nd visual (below) shows Tohru and the Sohmas in their animal form.
The anime slated to air in Japan in 2019 in TV Tokyo. Funimation has also got the rights to stream the anime as release on home video. The anime will be produced by TMS Entertainment and will be directed by Yoshihide Ibata.
The new adaptation will have new cast and staff. The main cast revealed are the following:
Manaka Iwami as Tohru Honda
Nobunaga Shimazaki as Yuki Sohma
Yuma Uchida as Kyo Sohma
Yuichi Nakamura as Shigure Sohma
Funimation also published a comment from the manga’s creator Natsuki Takaya. Below is an excerpt of her commentary:
I never once felt negatively about the project or thought that I didn’t want to do it, but still, my first thought was “What?!” (lol)
So, I made several requests right off the bat.
One of those was to do it with a completely new team.
Completely new. Every single person.
I told [the producers], if you want to open the curtain again, then please make it all new. Please rebuild the Furuba world from scratch, with new everything.
Another request was to not make the art look too much like my art.
This was partly because my Furuba art is old now, pure and simple, and also largely because I was in poor health back then (you can find more details about that in the afterword to the Collector’s Edition, if you’re curious), so my drawing was awfully shaky. Because of that, I wanted them to rebuild the art as well.
Other than that… Well, it was a mix. On some things I gave them detailed thoughts, and on others I gave them my blessing to do as they liked.
The production staff promptly accepted my requests and worked to meet them, and I’m truly grateful to them all. Thank you again.
They also readily gave me permission to visit the recording sessions sometimes, which makes me so happy. I don’t actually do anything there; I’m just an observer. (Really, I don’t do anything.)
It’s a pure delight, getting to see the reels a little early like that.
It was announced on the official website of Hana to Yume magazine that this year’s 24th issue of the magazine confirms a new anime adaptation of the popular Fruits Basket manga created by Natsuki Takaya. The magazine was released in Japan on November 20. The text in the announcement image says “Zenpen”, meaning “the entire story”.
The Fruits Basket manga series was released in the magazine back in 1998 and ended in 2006. It was released in English by Tokyopop and was re-released in 12 omnibus volumes by Yen Press in 2016.
The story centers on an ordinary high school girl named Tohru Honda who was forced to move out after a tragedy in the family and had no choice but to live in a tent. Little did she know that she actually stepped into the land owned by the Sohma clan. After she was offered to stay at their residence, she found out the Sohma’s family secret of turning themselves into animals based on their Chinese Zodiac when touched by the opposite sex.
Source: Anime News Network