Jiro Taniguchi's A Distant Neighborhood Gets New Live-Action Film in October
A new live-action film adaptation of Jiro Taniguchi's manga A Distant Neighborhood will open in Japan on October 9, 2026. BARCOS announced the project on Friday. Ryōhei Ōtani stars as the adult protagonist Hiroshi Nakahara, a 40-something salaryman who travels back in time to his 14-year-old self. Tōri Oikawa plays the younger Hiroshi. Momoko Isotani plays Tomoko Nagase, Hiroshi's childhood crush. Kenichi Takitō and Naho Toda portray Hiroshi's parents. Yoshinari Nishikoori wrote the script and directs. Eishi Segawa composes the music. The story is set in Tottori Prefecture, Taniguchi's hometown. Filming took place in Kurayoshi City, which retains the atmosphere of the mid-1950s to mid-1960s. Taniguchi serialized the manga in Shogakukan's Big Comic magazine in 1998. The manga previously inspired a 2008 live-action film co-produced by European companies that moved the setting to 1967 Paris. This new film is the first Japanese live-action adaptation. Plans for a Japanese live-action version had been in development for over a decade.