✨Cosmic Princess Kaguya! – The Near-Future Fairy Tale Reborn on Netflix This January (Full Breakdown & Streaming Guide)

If you thought you already knew The Tale of the Bamboo Cutter, think again — because 2025’s newest anime film, Cosmic Princess Kaguya!, blasts the beloved legend straight into the digital age with glowing neon, virtual worlds, celestial girls, and emotional storytelling that hits like a meteor.

Premiering January 22, 2026, only on Netflix, this bold sci-fi fantasy reimagines Japan’s oldest folktale through the lens of VR culture, runaway moon royalty, and a normal high-schooler whose life is about to get flipped inside out.

Directed by Shingo Yamashita — the visual mastermind behind the iconic openings of Jujutsu Kaisen, Chainsaw Man, and Urusei Yatsura — this film is built to stun. With a massive Vocaloid-powered soundtrack, breathtaking animation from Studio Colorido, and a story that blends folklore with futuristic wonder, Cosmic Princess Kaguya! is shaping up to be one of Netflix’s biggest anime premieres of 2026.

Here’s your full guide — the plot, the cast, the themes, why fans are excited, and most importantly, where to watch Cosmic Princess Kaguya! when it drops.

Let’s dive in.

🌕 What Is Cosmic Princess Kaguya! About?

At its heart, Cosmic Princess Kaguya! is a sci-fi retelling of the classic 10th-century folktale The Tale of the Bamboo Cutter. But instead of bamboo forests, emperors, and ancient moons, this version takes place in the near future — where virtual reality is the new normal, teenagers live double lives, and the line between real and digital has all but vanished.

Meet Iroha Sakayori

Iroha is an overworked, stressed-out Tokyo high schooler. Her only escape?

The virtual world Tsukuyomi, a massive online VR universe where people use clones to live out alternative dream lives — creating music, performing in digital arenas, or simply existing freely in ways they can’t offline.

Iroha’s real life is busy, predictable, and suffocating.

Her virtual life is open, expressive, and limitless.

But everything changes the night she encounters something impossible.

A Baby From a Glowing Utility Pole

One evening, Iroha finds a baby emerging from a glowing utility pole.

Yeah. A literal infant stepping out of a beam of light like it’s the most normal thing in the world.

Before she can even process what happened, the baby begins aging at a rapid pace — transforming into a girl Iroha’s age in a matter of moments.

This stranger? This impossible, otherworldly girl?

Her name is Kaguya — and she might be the modern reincarnation of Princess Kaguya herself.

Or maybe not.Or maybe something much stranger.

A Runaway Moon Girl With a Secret

Kaguya is playful, fearless, stubborn, and terrifyingly carefree.

She claims she’s from the Moon.

She insists she’s hiding from something.

And she immediately moves into Iroha’s life like she owns the place.

Suddenly, Iroha’s quiet world becomes a cosmic storm full of mystery, music, identity, and cosmic destiny.

🎤 Music, VR Worlds & Identity: A Modern Fairy Tale for the Digital Generation

One of the film’s biggest highlights is its musical storytelling — blending original songs directly into the VR performances in Tsukuyomi. The scenes play out like living music videos, merging Yamashita’s signature animation flair with real-time musical emotion.

Vocaloid All-Stars Power the Soundtrack

Get ready for tracks from:

• ryo (supercell) – creator of Hatsune Miku’s “Melt”

• kz (livetune)

• 40mP

• HoneyWorks

• Aqu3ra

• yuigot

This is easily one of the most stacked anime soundtracks in recent memory.

Two of the standout songs featured in the trailer:

🎵 “Watashiha Watashinokotoga Suki”– performed by Kaguya (Yuko Natsuyoshi), composed by HoneyWorks

🎵 “Ex-Otogibanashi”– the main theme, written by ryo (supercell), performed by Yachiyo

These tracks aren’t just inserts — they are core to the emotional foundation of the film.

✨ The Cast: A Dream Team Bringing Kaguya’s World to Life

Iroha Sakayori — voiced by Anna Nagase The grounded, ordinary girl forced to confront an extraordinary truth.

Kaguya — voiced by Yuko Natsuyoshi. The cosmic runaway whose presence disrupts everything Iroha thought she knew.

Yachiyo — voiced by Saori Hayami A mysterious figure tied deeply to the virtual world and the film’s central myth.

🎨 The Visuals: A Shingo Yamashita Masterpiece

Shingo Yamashita is known for turning simple sequences into kinetic, emotional explosions of animation. This film marks his first full-length project — and the result is a flawless blend of:

• 3D virtual spaces

• hand-drawn flourishes

• fluid experimental movement

• neon digital aesthetics

• intimate, emotional character animation

Produced by Studio Colorido (A Whisker Away, Drifting Home) and Yamashita’s own Studio Chromato, this film is dripping with artistic innovation.

Anime fans already predict it may become one of the most visually influential films of the decade.

🌟 Why Cosmic Princess Kaguya! Is Already Generating Huge Hype

Here’s why the anime community is buzzing:

1. A fresh take on Japan’s oldest folktale

The Kaguya legend has been retold for centuries — but never like this.

2. A VR world that reflects real digital culture

Tsukuyomi feels real. Like a futuristic Discord-meets-VRChat-meets-IdolStage.

3. A story focused on identity, duality, and self-discovery

Iroha and Kaguya’s contrast sets the emotional tone.

4. Music that elevates the narrative

The soundtrack alone could go viral.

5. A director known for artistic courage

Yamashita’s style isn’t just beautiful — it pushes the boundaries of what animation can be.

📺 Where to Watch Cosmic Princess Kaguya!

If you're wondering where to stream Cosmic Princess Kaguya!, here’s the official viewing guide:

🌏 Worldwide Streaming

✔ Netflix — Premiering January 22, 2026Available globally on launch day.

Not available on:

✘ Amazon Prime Video✘ Hulu✘ Crunchyroll✘ Disney+✘ HBO Max

Netflix holds exclusive global rights, so that’s the only place you’ll find it.

🌙 Final Thoughts: A Timeless Legend Reimagined for a New Generation

Cosmic Princess Kaguya! It’s not just another anime release — it’s a reinvention.

It blends mythology with technology.

It mixes tradition with modern emotion.

It asks timeless questions about identity, purpose, and belonging.

And it wraps everything in a cinematic experience bursting with color, music, and cosmic wonder.

Whether you love fantasy, sci-fi, Vocaloid music, mythology reboots, or anime that dares to experiment, Cosmic Princess

Kaguya! needs to be on your January watchlist.

This is one of 2026’s biggest anime events — and one you don’t want to miss.