Bless Manga Gets Live-Action Show on Amazon Prime
The live-action series arrives alongside a previously announced anime adaptation, giving Bless two separate screen versions in the same year.
Key Facts
- The live-action Bless drama will stream worldwide on Amazon Prime Video in spring 2027.
- Ryusei Onishi of Naniwa Danshi stars as Aia Udagawa, a former model aiming to become a makeup artist.
- The Bless manga has more than 1.25 million copies in circulation.
- Kodansha will publish the ninth volume of Bless on October 8.
- A-1 Pictures announced in March that it is producing a 2027 television anime adaptation of Bless.
Reporting from 2 sources: Anime News Network, Cinema Today.
Yukino Sonoyama's manga Bless is getting a live-action drama series that will stream worldwide on Amazon Prime Video in spring 2027. Naniwa Danshi idol group member Ryusei Onishi stars as Aia Udagawa, a former model who wants to become a makeup artist. Onishi prepared for the role by visiting SABFA, a hair and makeup school run by Shiseido, to learn professional techniques and mannerisms before filming began. The production has full cooperation from Shiseido, with top hair and makeup artist Ikuko Shindo serving as makeup supervisor. Izuru Kumasaka and Maki Tomita are directing, while Satoko Okazaki and Ichiro Kusuno are writing the scripts. Amazon MGM Studios is presenting the project, and C & I Entertainment is producing. The manga, which debuted in 2022, now runs in Monthly Shonen Sirius. Kodansha will publish the ninth volume on October 8, and the series has more than 1.25 million copies in circulation. A-1 Pictures announced in March that it is producing a 2027 television anime adaptation of the same manga.
Onishi is known in the entertainment industry as one of its top cosmetics enthusiasts, a detail the casting leans into. Before filming, he studied at SABFA, the hair and makeup school run by Shiseido, to learn the mannerisms and knowledge of professional makeup artists. He said the experience taught him "not only makeup techniques but also the deportment and mindset of a makeup artist," and called it "nothing more luxurious" for someone who loves makeup.
The drama follows Aia as a former model who gave up his dream of becoming a makeup artist out of fear of deviating from others' expectations. He enters a school festival contest with Jun Sumizaki, a quiet classmate who hunches his back to hide the freckles on his face, with the pair taking on the roles of stylist and model. Original author Yukino Sonoyama described the drama as "like a glasswork, passionate, dazzling, and delicate," and said she hopes viewers "are enveloped in light of blessing."
Shiseido Beauty Creation Center is overseeing the makeup in the production, on top of Shindo's supervision. The manga is being released in English by Kodansha USA Publishing, which described the story as one about Aia, destined to be a model, and Jun, bullied for her freckles, taking back "the power to define themselves" in a fashion manga that asks "what it takes to overcome an arbitrary system that seems to respect talent over hard work." Kodansha USA released the seventh volume on February 10, and the series is also available digitally on Kodansha's K MANGA service.
Synthesized by Yomimono from the 2 cited sources below, including Japanese-language reporting where cited, then editorially reviewed before publishing.
Sources
- Anime News Network News Yukino Sonoyama's Bless Manga Gets Live-Action Show on Amazon Prime Globally
- Cinema Today 大西流星主演「ブレス」実写化決定！Prime Videoで2027年春