Theatrical poster. Photo courtesy of Toho Co., Ltd. ©2026 You, Like a Star Production Committee ©Yuu Nagira / Kodansha

Toho has provided SciFi Japan with the official press notes and images for their new romantic drama YOU, LIKE A STAR (汝、星のごとく, Nanji, Hoshi no Gotoku), which is now playing in Japanese cinemas.

Introduction

A Bookstore Award-winning work that has sold over 1.7 million copies. A 15-year-old love story made into a movie by director Michito Fujii and starring Ryusei Yokohama and Suzu Hirose!

The masterpiece romance novel You, Like a Star by author Yuu Nagira was released from Kodansha Bunko in 2022. Immediately after its publication, it was enthusiastically received by a wide range of readers, and won the 20th Bookstore Award the following year. Now comes the long-awaited film adaptation of the popular novel which has sold over 1.7 million copies.

Setouchi and Tokyo. A dream that shines far away, and a reality that ruthlessly presses against you. Ryusei Yokohama and Suzu Hirose, two of Japan's leading actors, will portray the story of 15 years of love and decisions between a man and a woman at the mercy of fate.

Yokohama came across this book and longed to "live out this story"' and told Nagira of his passion for making it into a movie. He approached his close friend Michito Fujii, who won the Japan Academy Award for Best Actor and Best Director for FACELESS (正体, Shotai, 2024), saying, “He’s the only one for this.” Naoko Adachi, the screenwriter of the NHK TV morning drama series WELCOME BACK, MONE (おかえりモネ, Okaeri Mone, 2021) and the WHAT DID YOU EAT YESTERDAY? (きのう何食べた?, Kinou Nani Tabeta?, 2019-2023) series, also joined the production team, resonating with the project’s mission to “reach as many people as possible living in the present.”

That enthusiasm spread, and Suzu Hirose, who had given a soul-stirring performance in the film adaptation of Yuu Nagira's WANDERING (流浪の月, Ruro no Tsuki, 2022), gladly accepted the role of the other main character. Alongside Kai, played by Yokohama with divine intensity, she meticulously embodied the heart and life of Akimi, a character who embodies both delicacy and inner strength, as if stitching her story together one stitch at a time. From age 17 to 32—from high school students to working adults—the film portrays with overwhelming realism the truth of lovers who, despite happiness and trials, even when far apart or occasionally clashing and hurting one another, cannot help but think of each other.

Furthermore, the movie features a stellar cast portraying the people surrounding Kai and Akimi. Hokuto Matsumura, Anne Nakamura, Gaku Hamada, Machiko Ono, Yoshino Kimura, Yuriko Ishida, and Hiroki Hasegawa brilliantly bring these turbulent lives to life, vividly illustrating the complexities of human existence. With its profoundly nuanced character portrayals and breathtaking visual beauty, the film delivers a truly exceptional human drama.