Puella Magi Madoka Magica the Movie: Walpurgisnacht Rising has released its main trailer, providing the clearest look yet at the long-awaited continuation of Homura Akemi and Madoka Kaname’s story.
The nearly two-minute trailer previews new scenes from the film while revealing its principal theme song, “Kanata,” performed by FictionJunction, the solo music project created by composer Yuki Kajiura.
A detailed official synopsis has also been published, confirming that the movie will explore the unstable world created by Homura at the end of Puella Magi Madoka Magica the Movie: Rebellion.
The story introduces strange incidents involving a mysterious telephone rumor, girls hunting magical beasts without Soul Gems and two new magical girls who are searching for the Law of Cycles.
Puella Magi Madoka Magica the Movie: Walpurgisnacht Rising will open in Japanese theaters on August 28, 2026.
The Main Trailer Reveals More of the Film’s Story
Previous trailers relied heavily on mysterious imagery and fragmented dialogue, preserving the uncertainty surrounding the sequel.
The main trailer moves closer to explaining the central conflict without revealing how the story will ultimately resolve the confrontation between Madoka and Homura.
Homura appears to remain in control of the rewritten world she created after separating Madoka Kaname from the Law of Cycles.
However, the order she established is beginning to break down.
Magical girls continue living in Mitakihara City, but unusual events suggest that the system governing their powers and destinies is no longer functioning normally.
The trailer includes confrontations, distorted cityscapes, witch-like imagery and several versions of familiar characters whose exact identities and roles remain unclear.
Walpurgisnacht Rising Opens on August 28, 2026
The film will premiere in Japan on Friday, August 28, 2026.
- Japanese release date: August 28, 2026
- Format: Theatrical anime film
- Animation studio: SHAFT
- Japanese distributor: ANIMEC
- Chief director: Akiyuki Shinbo
- Director: Yukihiro Miyamoto
- Screenplay: Gen Urobuchi
- Music: Yuki Kajiura
- Theme song: “Kanata” by FictionJunction
An international theatrical schedule has not yet been fully announced.
The movie’s runtime, international streaming plans and dubbed-language release dates also remain unconfirmed.
FictionJunction Performs the Theme Song “Kanata”
The film’s theme song is titled “Kanata,” which can be translated as “Beyond” or “The Far Side,” depending on context.
The song is performed under Yuki Kajiura’s FictionJunction project and can be heard throughout the second half of the main trailer.
Kajiura composed the music for the original television series and the previous Madoka Magica movies, making her sound an essential part of the franchise’s identity.
Her combination of orchestral arrangements, choral vocals and emotionally intense melodies helped establish the contrast between the series’ beautiful magical-girl imagery and its darker themes.
Kajiura explained that she did not want “Kanata” to function as a song that simply provides an answer to the film’s mysteries.
Instead, she created it as someone who has followed the characters for many years and wanted to send them forward with a song that feels beautiful, nostalgic and emotionally bittersweet.
The Film Continues Directly After Rebellion
Walpurgisnacht Rising is officially described as the legitimate sequel to Puella Magi Madoka Magica the Movie: Rebellion.
The previous film ended with Homura transforming herself into a demonic existence after preventing Madoka from fully returning to the Law of Cycles.
Homura separated the human Madoka from her divine form and rewrote reality, creating a world where Madoka could once again live with her family and friends.
That act appeared to give Madoka an ordinary life, but it also violated the cosmic system created by her original wish.
Homura accepted the role of a demon opposing Madoka’s divine existence, claiming that love motivated her decision.
The new movie begins in the unstable reality produced by that choice.
What Happened to Madoka Kaname?
In the original television series, Madoka eventually used her wish to erase every witch before it could be born.
The scale of that wish transformed her into the supernatural concept known as the Law of Cycles.
Madoka was removed from ordinary human reality and began rescuing magical girls before despair could transform them into witches.
Most people lost their memories of her existence, but Homura continued remembering the girl she had repeatedly attempted to save.
Rebellion ended when Homura extracted Madoka’s human identity from the Law of Cycles and placed her inside a newly reconstructed world.
Walpurgisnacht Rising will examine the consequences of a reality where Madoka exists as a normal student even though the cosmic force she once embodied is no longer complete.
Homura Rules the World She Created
The official synopsis describes Homura as observing the distorted everyday world while reigning over it as a demon.
At first, she appears to possess everything she wanted.
Madoka has returned, the magical girls can spend time together and the painful separation created by the Law of Cycles has been temporarily reversed.
However, Homura’s world was built through manipulation rather than genuine restoration.
Madoka does not completely understand what happened to her, while the other characters occupy roles influenced by Homura’s reconstruction of reality.
The main trailer suggests that Homura’s control is being challenged by forces connected to witches, the Law of Cycles and the magical girls she attempted to protect.
A Mysterious Rumor Spreads Through Mitakihara City
The official synopsis introduces a strange rumor circulating among girls in Mitakihara City.
According to the rumor, something called the Lizard Telephone can grant wishes in exchange for fighting the curses of the world.
The exact nature of the telephone remains unexplained.
It may represent a new method of creating magical girls, a distorted replacement for Kyubey’s contracts or a phenomenon born from Homura’s altered reality.
Its reference to wishes and curses immediately connects it to the cycle that previously governed magical girls and witches.
Girls Without Soul Gems Are Hunting Magical Beasts
Another abnormal development involves girls hunting magical beasts despite not possessing Soul Gems.
Under the original magical-girl system, a girl’s soul was transferred into a Soul Gem after making a contract with Kyubey.
The gem became the source of her magical power and the physical container for her soul.
The appearance of fighters operating without Soul Gems indicates that the rules have changed significantly.
The film has not revealed whether these girls are ordinary humans, artificial magical girls or entities produced by another supernatural system.
Their existence may expose a weakness in Homura’s world or provide a new method of accessing power without accepting Kyubey’s original contract.
Two New Magical Girls Seek the Law of Cycles
The movie introduces two new magical girls named Shichoka and Selma Therese.
Both characters are searching for the Law of Cycles and appear to oppose Homura.
The official synopsis states that the girls declare they will not forgive Homura Akemi.
Their knowledge of the Law of Cycles immediately distinguishes them from ordinary magical girls, most of whom should not possess a complete understanding of Madoka’s divine identity.
Their objectives, origins and connection to Madoka remain mysterious.
Shion Wakayama Voices Shichoka
Shion Wakayama voices Shichoka, one of the two newly introduced magical girls.
Shichoka is shown wearing glasses and using a design dominated by green tones.
Promotional footage presents her as an active participant in the supernatural conflict rather than a background character introduced only to expand the cast.
The exact nature of her weapon and wish has not yet been formally explained.
Tomoyo Kurosawa Voices Selma Therese
Tomoyo Kurosawa joins the cast as Selma Therese.
Selma possesses a distinctive costume and large decorative elements around her head, immediately separating her visually from the original Mitakihara magical girls.
She appears to share Shichoka’s interest in finding the Law of Cycles and confronting Homura.
The production has not revealed whether the two girls originate from Homura’s world, another timeline or a place connected directly to Madoka’s supernatural domain.
Walpurgisnacht Returns to the Center of the Story
The official synopsis identifies Walpurgisnacht as a collection of multiple witches that once tormented Homura.
In the original television series, Walpurgisnacht was the catastrophic witch whose arrival repeatedly destroyed Mitakihara City.
Homura traveled through numerous timelines attempting to defeat it and prevent Madoka from making a contract.
The new film’s title indicates that Walpurgisnacht is returning in a transformed or renewed form.
The movie also introduces a location described as the place where all witches began, named Nazuka Sokotsune.
How this location relates to Walpurgisnacht, the Law of Cycles and Homura’s reconstructed reality remains one of the film’s largest mysteries.
The Original Main Cast Returns
- Aoi Yuki as Madoka Kaname
- Chiwa Saito as Homura Akemi
- Eri Kitamura as Sayaka Miki
- Ai Nonaka as Kyoko Sakura
- Kaori Mizuhashi as Mami Tomoe
- Kana Asumi as Nagisa Momoe
- Shion Wakayama as Shichoka
- Tomoyo Kurosawa as Selma Therese
- Emiri Kato as Kyubey
The returning cast preserves the performances associated with the television series and Rebellion while allowing the new characters to enter the conflict with distinct voices.
Sayaka, Kyoko, Mami and Nagisa Return
Sayaka Miki, Kyoko Sakura, Mami Tomoe and Nagisa Momoe all appear in the main trailer.
Their current circumstances are complicated by Homura’s rewritten world.
Sayaka and Nagisa previously served the Law of Cycles and understood that Homura’s witch barrier had created a false version of reality.
That knowledge made Sayaka one of the few characters openly capable of challenging Homura after the world was rewritten.
Mami and Kyoko also return to battle, although the trailer deliberately avoids explaining how much they remember about the events of Rebellion.
Kyubey Remains Part of Homura’s World
Kyubey returns despite being severely punished by Homura at the conclusion of Rebellion.
The Incubators previously attempted to observe and control the Law of Cycles by isolating Homura before she could be rescued.
Their experiment caused Homura to become a witch inside a sealed environment, eventually allowing Madoka and the others to enter her barrier.
Homura responded by taking control of reality and forcing Kyubey to absorb the curses produced by the new system.
The main trailer does not reveal whether the Incubators have recovered enough influence to interfere with her world again.
The Core Creative Team Reunites at SHAFT
Walpurgisnacht Rising reunites the principal creators responsible for the original anime and Rebellion.
Akiyuki Shinbo returns as chief director, while Yukihiro Miyamoto directs the film.
Gen Urobuchi of Nitroplus wrote the screenplay, continuing the story he developed for the television series and previous movies.
Ume Aoki provides the original character concepts, with Junichiro Taniguchi adapting them for animation.
SHAFT once again handles animation production.
Main Production Staff
- Original work: Magica Quartet
- Chief director: Akiyuki Shinbo
- Screenplay: Gen Urobuchi of Nitroplus
- Original character design: Ume Aoki
- Director: Yukihiro Miyamoto
- Character design and chief animation director: Junichiro Taniguchi
- Chief animation director: Hirotaka Yamamura
- Alternate-space design: Gekidan Inu Curry
- Storyboard and visual concept design: Tomohiro Furukawa
- Visual concept design: Kazuki Kawada
- Color design: Hitoshi Hibino
- Art: Ken Naito and Shuichi Kusamori
- Art setting: Morihito Ohara
- Director of photography: Takayuki Aizu
- Editor: Rie Matsubara
- Music: Yuki Kajiura
- Sound director: Yota Tsuruoka
- Animation production: SHAFT
- Distribution: ANIMEC
The Movie Experienced Multiple Delays
Walpurgisnacht Rising was originally planned for release during winter 2024.
The film was later moved to winter 2025 before receiving a February 2026 theatrical window.
Its release was eventually rescheduled again, with August 28, 2026 becoming the current confirmed Japanese premiere date.
The main trailer continues to display that specific date, indicating that the film remains scheduled for its late-August opening.
Rebellion Returns to Japanese Cinemas Before the Sequel
The previous three Madoka Magica theatrical films are receiving revival screenings in Japan before Walpurgisnacht Rising arrives.
The first two movies retell the television anime, while Rebellion continues beyond the original ending and establishes the situation leading directly into the new film.
Watching Rebellion is particularly important because Walpurgisnacht Rising assumes familiarity with Homura’s transformation, Madoka’s separation from the Law of Cycles and the reconstructed world created during the final sequence.
What Remains Unknown?
The movie’s runtime has not yet been announced.
International theatrical dates, streaming availability and dubbed-language plans remain unconfirmed.
The identities of several figures shown in the trailers have not been explained.
The production has also not revealed exactly what Shichoka and Selma want from the Law of Cycles or how Walpurgisnacht can exist after Madoka rewrote the universe to eliminate witches before their creation.
The final relationship between Madoka and Homura remains the largest mystery being preserved for the theatrical release.
Final Thoughts
Puella Magi Madoka Magica the Movie: Walpurgisnacht Rising will open in Japanese theaters on August 28, 2026.
The main trailer previews FictionJunction’s theme song “Kanata” and provides the most detailed look yet at the unstable world created by Homura at the end of Rebellion.
The official synopsis introduces a rumor about a wish-granting Lizard Telephone, girls hunting magical beasts without Soul Gems and two new magical girls searching for the Law of Cycles.
Shion Wakayama and Tomoyo Kurosawa join the cast as Shichoka and Selma Therese, while Aoi Yuki, Chiwa Saito, Eri Kitamura, Ai Nonaka, Kaori Mizuhashi, Kana Asumi and Emiri Kato return in their established roles.
Akiyuki Shinbo, Gen Urobuchi, Ume Aoki, Yukihiro Miyamoto, Junichiro Taniguchi and Yuki Kajiura reunite at SHAFT for the direct continuation of Rebellion.
With Homura’s artificial paradise beginning to collapse and magical girls once again searching for Madoka’s divine power, Walpurgisnacht Rising is preparing to determine whether Homura’s act of love can survive the return of the system she attempted to overthrow.
