Toho Animation dropped the first trailer for the upcoming Apothecary Diaries film today, along with a release date, poster, and new character visuals. The good news: the movie looks sick. The bad news: the release date is only for Japan.
There’s no official translation on the movie’s subtitle yet—Google translates it as “The Secret Treasure of the Deceased Consort,” while Anime News Network has it as “The Deceased Empress’ Treasure,” and someone on Reddit has gone with the more polite “Treasure of the Late Consort.” Crunchyroll did the smart thing and avoided the issue altogether, which is probably what I should have done, too, but it’s too late for that now.
The Apothecary Diaries started as a novel that author Hyūganatsu published for free online and continued as a light novel series published by Shufunotomo. The series follows Mao Mao, a young apothecary in a fictional country based on Imperial China, who is kidnapped and sold as a servant to the emperor’s palace. There, she uses her skills to solve poison-related mysteries among the many consorts in the emperor’s rear palace. The Apothecary Diaries was adapted into an anime series in 2023, which is still ongoing.
Unlike the anime series, though, the movie isn’t based on the light novels. Instead, it’s based on a new original story by Hyūganatsu in which Mao Mao and Jinshi are tasked with escorting the body of a consort back to her hometown, where they discover a mystery that has something to do with a young boy named Mu Qing.
In addition to the trailer, the series’ website published a new poster and character visuals of Mao Mao, Jinshi and Mu Qing (plus a headshot of Mariya Ise, who voices the character), which you can see below.
The Apothecary Diaries movie opens on December 11, 2026, in Japan.
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