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All You Need is Kill Anime Adds 3 Cast Members

The official website for Warner Bros. Japan and STUDIO4°C's anime of Hiroshi Sakurazaka and Yoshitoshi ABe's All You Need Is Kill science fiction light novel announced three more cast members on Friday:

The original novel by Sakurazaka is set in a future Earth under attack by alien invaders known as Mimics. Humanity's infantry goes into battle in powered armor suits that enhance their deadliness, but they are still losing the war. Keiji Kiriya is a newly enlisted soldier, but dies in his first battle. After he dies, he finds himself awakening to a time prior to the battle, having inexplicably entered a time loop. Through a repeating process of dying and learning from his mistakes, he slowly finds a way to live longer and longer, and finds himself drawn to an elite soldier named Rita Vrataski.

The anime retells the story from Rita's viewpoint, a different viewpoint from the novel and Hollywood's Edge of Tomorrow film adaptation.

The anime stars:

Ai Mikami as Rita, who has "closed herself off emotionally, building walls between herself and others..."

Natsuki Hanae as Keiji, who "usually hides behind a smile, trying to blend in and avoid standing out..."

The Annecy International Animation Film Festival in France is screening the anime this week.

Kenichiro Akimoto (Children of the Sea CGI director, Fortune Favors Lady Nikuko unit director) is directing the anime at STUDIO4°C.

University student and singer-songwriter AKASAKI performs the theme song "Tsuretette" for the anime. AKASAKI specifically wrote the song for the anime. This is AKASAKI's first anime theme.

GKIDS acquired the anime in multiple territories, including North America, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia, and New Zealand. The company will screen the film in theaters.

Shueisha published the novel in December 2004. Viz Media published Sakurazaka's novel in English to launch its Haikasoru imprint for Japanese science fiction and fantasy in 2009.

The novel spawned a manga by artist Takeshi Obata (Hikaru no Go, Death Note, Bakuman.) and writer Ryōsuke Takeuchi (ST&RS) in Shueisha's Young Jump magazine in January to May 2014. Viz Media published the manga in English.

Viz also released a separate one-volume full-color graphic novel adaptation of the story in May 2014. Nick Mamatas (Move Under Ground) adapted the story and Lee Ferguson (Green Arrow, Miranda Mercury) drew the art.

The novel inspired the live-action Hollywood movie adaptation Edge of Tomorrow in 2014, starring Tom Cruise and Emily Blunt. Edge of Tomorrow made over US$100 million in the U.S., US$15 million in Japan, and US$370,541,256 worldwide.

Sources: All You Need Is Kill anime's website, Comic Natalie