Source: Aniplex of America, Electro 89 press release Official Site: sao-movie.net (Japan), sao-movie.net/us (US) Sword Art Online, the mega hit that sold 16.7 million copies, will come back as an animated feature with a brand new original story by author, Reki Kawahara!

SWORD ART ONLINE THE MOVIE – ORDINAL SCALE – Onstage at Anime Expo 2016/Los Angeles, U.S.A. OPENING WORLDWIDE IN SPRING 2017! Unveiling an exclusive sneak peek from the film for the first time! The first trailer and all-new visuals! Based on the wildly popular light novels published in Kadokawa`s Dengeki Bunko, SWORD ART ONLINE THE MOVIE – ORDINAL SCALE – (??? ???????????? -???????????- Gekijooban Soodo Aato Onrain -Oodinaru Sukeeru-) is set to be released nationwide in spring 2017. In addition, the first trailer, featuring scenes from the upcoming film, as well as brand-new visuals drawn by character designer Shingo Adachi were unveiled during the SWORD ART ONLINE event at Anime Expo 2016, held in Los Angeles, U.S.A. on Saturday, July 2 (PST), offering over 3,000 fans in attendance a special sneak peek. The animated TV series SWORD ART ONLINE is based on author Reki Kawahara`s light novel (winner of the 15th Dengeki Novel Award Grand Prize) in which the protagonist Kirito fights to survive in the mysterious next-gen VRMMORPG called "Sword Art Online." Since the first volume of the novel was published in April 2009, the series has proved extremely popular, with cumulative sales exceeding 11.5 million units in Japan and 16.7 million worldwide, spawning two TV anime adaptations, video games, comic books, and merchandise. In spring 2017, SWORD ART ONLINE THE MOVIE – ORDINAL SCALE –, a brand-new, original story written by Reki Kawahara, is set for theatrical release, much to the anticipation of SAO fans around the world. NEWS On Saturday, July 2 (PST), two secret guests from the cast of the upcoming film, Haruka Tomatsu (Asuna) and Ayahi Takagaki (Lisbeth), surprised the audience by appearing at the SAO Festival held during the anime convention, Anime Expo 2016, in Los Angeles. Hearing the announcement that the movie would be opening in Japan in spring 2017, and later worldwide, the crowd of 3,000 SAO fans erupted in cheers! Also during this event, the first trailer -- featuring scenes from the movie for the first time -- as well as the latest key visuals drawn by character designer Shingo Adachi were unveiled. An animated feature with a brand-new original story by author, Reki Kawahara!

STORY The NerveGear, the world`s first dedicated full-dive device developed by the genius programmer, Akihiko Kayaba in 2022... a revolutionary machine that opened up infinite possibilities for the world of VR (Virtual Reality.) 4 years later: A next-generation, wearable multi-device called the Augma has been released to compete with the NerveGear`s successor, the Amusphere. A cutting-edge machine boasting the ability to enhance AR (Augmented Reality) to the maximum, the Augma offers a safe, user-friendly experience, as it can be used while the player is awake, making it an instant hit. Its killer title is an ARMMORPG developed exclusively for the Augma, "Ordinal Scale (a.k.a. OS)." Kirito is about to join Asuna and the others as an Ordinal Scale player, but they`re about to find out that it isn`t all fun and games...

CREDITS Title: SWORD ART ONLINE THE MOVIE – ORDINAL SCALE – Coming to Theaters: Spring, 2017 Nationwide First-run Release Distributed by Aniplex Inc. STAFF Original Story: Reki Kawahara (Dengeki Bunko / ASCII MEDIA WORKS) Director: Tomohiko Ito Character Design Concept: abec Character Design: Shingo Adachi Music: Yuki Kajiura Animation Production: A-1 Pictures Distributed by Aniplex Inc. Produced by SAO MOVIE Project CAST Kirito (Kazuto Kirigaya): Yoshitsugu Matsuoka Asuna (Asuna Yuuki): Haruka Tomatsu Yui: Kanae Ito Sinon (Shino Asada): Miyuki Sawashiro Lisbeth (Rika Shinozaki): Ayahi Takagaki Silica (Keiko Ayano): Rina Hidaka Klein (Ryotaro Tsuboi): Hiroaki Hirata Leafa (Suguha Kirigaya): Ayana Taketatsu Agil (Andrew Gilbert Mills): Hiroki Yasumoto Akihiko Kayaba: Koichi Yamadera

About Aniplex of America Inc.

Aniplex of America Inc. (Santa Monica, California) is a subsidiary of Aniplex Inc. (headquartered in Tokyo, Japan), a group of Sony Music Entertainment (Japan) Inc. and leading provider of anime content and music production and distribution in Japan. Aniplex of America has launched fan-favorite DVD and Blu-Ray releases such as BAKEMONOGATARI, DURARARA!!, PUELLA MAGI MADOKA MAGICA, THE GARDEN OF SINNERS and BLUE EXORCIST. The company`s ever-growing line-up of shows includes our most recent titles, SWORD ART ONLINE, MAGI, BLAST OF TEMPEST, OREHURA and VIVIDRED OPERATION.