Anime NYC ‘26: GKIDS acquires VAMPIRE HUNTER D: BLOODLUST, sets 2027 North American theatrical return

The gothic horror cult classic is riding a fresh wave of momentum — a Dark Horse comic, new manga, and now a full theatrical rollout. GKIDS announced Saturday at Anime NYC 2026 that it has acquired the North American theatrical and home video rights to Yoshiaki Kawajiri’s Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust, with a full theatrical release set for 2027.

The 2000 dark fantasy film, animated at Madhouse and based on Hideyuki Kikuchi‘s long-running novel series, has spent over two decades as a hard-to-see cult favorite in the U.S. — kept alive mostly through import and out-of-print discs rather than any real theatrical or streaming presence. Discotek Media most recently released the film on DVD and Blu-ray in 2015, after Urban Vision’s original DVD and VHS release in 2002.

Ahead of the 2027 rollout, GKIDS will screen the Japanese-language version with English subtitles in select theaters this fall. The distributor has confirmed it holds both theatrical and home video rights — Blu-ray and DVD included — signaling a genuine reintroduction rather than a one-off festival run.

Vampire Hunter D is having a moment

The timing lines up with a broader Vampire Hunter D resurgence. Just a day before GKIDS’ announcement, Dark Horse Comics used its Anime NYC panel at the Javits Center to unveil the publisher’s first-ever original comic set in the D universe: Vampire Hunter D: Fortress of Blood, a four-issue miniseries written by Chris Condon with art by Filipe Andrade, colors by Jordie Bellaire, and covers pulling in names like Riccardo Federici, Emma Rios, and original series illustrator Yoshitaka Amano. It hits shelves December 16, 2026. 

Dark Horse also confirmed a new prose-adjacent manga volume, Vampire Hunter D: Rose Princess by Saiko Takaki, for June 2027 — putting a comic, a manga, and a theatrical re-release all landing within roughly six months of each other.

The story follows D, a vampire-hunting “Dunpeal,” hired to rescue a young woman seemingly abducted by the vampire Baron Meier Link, a chase that pits D against a crew of mercenary bounty hunters as the truth about the woman grows more complicated.

No release date, city list, or restoration details have been confirmed for the theatrical run yet. GKIDS says more information is coming soon.

Source: GKIDS