A new VIVANT film will reach Japanese cinemas on December 4, 2026, distributor Toho announced on November 8 after the TBS spy drama's second-season finale. IMAX screenings are planned for opening day. Selected cinemas will begin selling reserved seats for the opening weekend at midnight on November 9, Japan time, although exact showtimes, venues and booking rules vary by operator.
A final-episode reveal becomes a cinema announcement
Japan's TBS spy drama VIVANT will continue as an original theatrical film opening nationwide on December 4, 2026. The decision became public on November 8, the day the television series concluded its second season. Japanese entertainment outlets reported that star Masato Sakai disclosed the movie at the end of the broadcast, turning what could have been a conventional finale into an announcement of a new release only weeks away. Distributor Toho's film website independently confirms the release date and describes the project as an entirely new movie, not a theatrical compilation of television episodes.
The timetable gives the announcement an unusually immediate consequence for audiences. Instead of teasing an undated adaptation, Toho has named a Friday opening and attached an advance ticket sale that begins at midnight as November 8 turns into November 9 in Japan. That launch date follows the television finale by less than a month. The announcement establishes a scheduled theatrical release; it does not establish how many tickets will sell, how the film will perform or whether a given cinema will show it in every available format. Those details belong to later schedules and actual sales.
Sources: 映画『VIVANT』公式サイト｜12月4日（金）公開 · 『VIVANT』映画化を正式発表 12月4日公開 最終回直後に電撃発表 · 「VIVANT」映画化決定！ 12月4日から全国で公開、最終回放送終了後に発表
What the television series established
VIVANT began on TBS in 2023 and returned for a second season in 2026. Its central character, Yusuke Nogi, played by Masato Sakai, is drawn into a story involving Japan's secretive intelligence unit Beppan, the international group Tent and the country's public-security police. The combination of espionage, shifting loyalties and overseas locations explains why the move to a cinema screen is more than a simple change of distribution. It also makes the film accessible to discussion as a continuation of a known fictional world, without assuming that the movie must reproduce any particular television storyline.
The established television ensemble includes Hiroshi Abe, Fumi Nikaido, Tori Matsuzaka, Kazunari Ninomiya and Koji Yakusho alongside Sakai, according to TBS's own cast directory. Those are verified credits for the drama, not by themselves a newly released film casting sheet. Toho's November 8 announcement refers broadly to an all-star ensemble but does not provide a complete role-by-role movie roster. Sakai's public involvement in the unveiling is clear. The precise film appearances, character fates and amount of screen time for other performers should not be inferred from their roles in the television seasons.
Sources: キャスト ＆ スタッフ｜TBSテレビ 日曜劇場『VIVANT』 · はじめに｜TBSテレビ 日曜劇場『VIVANT』 · 『VIVANT』映画化を正式発表 12月4日公開 最終回直後に電撃発表
The creative team and what is still undisclosed
TBS identifies Katsuo Fukuzawa as a central creative force behind the television production, crediting him with original concept, direction and producing responsibilities in its current series materials. The broadcaster separately names other television directors, producers and writers. A November 8 report by Japanese film publication CINEMAS+ identifies Fukuzawa as director, original creator, screenwriter and producer of the movie. That is a reported film credit, distinct from the original broadcaster's television staff page, and should be understood with that sourcing rather than extended automatically to every person who worked on the series.
The film's official announcement is notably specific about distribution but much less specific about its plot. It promises a new big-screen adventure, yet provides no detailed synopsis explaining the central conflict, how the ending of the television story connects to the movie or which mysteries will be resolved. Neither a running time nor a complete public film-credit list is established by the release notice reviewed for this report. The conservative approach is to report the confirmed opening and creative continuity while leaving story revelations, precise casting and technical production specifications for future official disclosures.
Sources: キャスト ＆ スタッフ｜TBSテレビ 日曜劇場『VIVANT』 · 『VIVANT』映画化、12月4日公開！IMAX上映も決定、チケットは11月9日午前0時から · 映画『VIVANT』公式サイト｜12月4日（金）公開
A nationwide opening that also includes IMAX
Toho says the new movie will open in cinemas across Japan on December 4, with IMAX presentations beginning the same day. That is a meaningful format commitment: viewers in participating locations will be able to choose a large-format screening at the start of the theatrical run rather than waiting for a later edition. The official theater directory linked from Toho's film site identifies individual participating theaters and marks some IMAX locations. It is the practical source for checking where the film is expected to play, subject to changes by theater operators.
Nationwide release does not mean an IMAX screen exists at every listed cinema, and the official list is not a verified final count of screens, screenings or tickets. Theater operators control their detailed timetables, which may be updated as demand and scheduling allow. For example, TOHO Cinemas says its LaLaport Yokohama location will not offer advance IMAX ticket sales for the film because of IMAX Laser installation work and an associated closure period. This exception illustrates why a blanket promise of identical access across Japan would mislead filmgoers despite the nationwide and simultaneous-IMAX announcements.
Sources: 映画『VIVANT』公式サイト｜12月4日（金）公開 · VIVANT 劇場情報 · 『VIVANT』公開初日から3日間の12月4日（金）・5日（土）・6日（日）の上映分の座席指定券、先行販売決定！
How the unusually early ticket sales work
TOHO Cinemas says reserved seats for the opening three days, December 4, 5 and 6, go on sale online at 00:00 Japan Standard Time on Monday, November 9. Theater counters begin selling when the relevant cinema opens that day. Its notice specifies ordinary admission pricing and says eligible discount coupons can be used; it does not establish one uniform yen price for every seat and format. The chain also excludes these sales from a separate early-purchase benefit for certain TOHO-ONE members. Buyers should select a specific cinema, date, showtime and screen before purchasing.
Other operators have published their own instructions. Cinema Ikspiari similarly limits the early sale to selected screenings across December 4–6, with online credit-card booking from midnight and counter or machine sales from 10 a.m. United Cinemas says its initial advance sale covers those same dates and anticipates ordinary booking arrangements for later performances. These distinctions matter: the midnight date is a launch for specified opening-weekend screenings, not an unlimited presale covering every future screening or every cinema.
Sources: 『VIVANT』公開初日から3日間の12月4日（金）・5日（土）・6日（日）の上映分の座席指定券、先行販売決定！ · 『VIVANT』先売りチケット販売について · 『VIVANT』11月9日（月）0時よりチケット早売り決定！
The opening event and the next information to watch
Toho has also scheduled a VIVANT opening ceremony in Tokyo for December 4 beginning at 4 p.m. Japan time. The venue has not been publicly specified beyond the Tokyo area in the official notice, and the planned onstage participants were still to be announced as of November 8. The movie campaign will be accompanied by another way for viewers to revisit the franchise: Toho says the first two television seasons will be made available sequentially for free on TVer and TBS FREE, with each service providing its own schedule. It also says U-NEXT carries both seasons in full.
Several significant facts therefore remain open even though the release and first ticket window are settled. Theater-specific showtimes and seat inventories can change, and the advance-sale terms differ by operator. The official film page has not yet supplied a detailed plot breakdown or a definitive complete credit list in the materials reviewed. The next useful checks for audiences are the official participating-theater directory, a selected cinema's booking page and any further production information from Toho or TBS. For now, the confirmed news is substantial enough: a television story has a dated new cinematic chapter, a concurrent IMAX rollout and an opening-weekend ticket sale.
Sources: 映画『VIVANT』公式サイト｜12月4日（金）公開 · VIVANT 劇場情報
