An animated movie of one of the most popular basketball series, Slam Dunk, has been announced for autumn next year.

Furthermore, Takehiko Inoue, the manga author of Slam Dunk, will be in charge of writing the script and directing the movie.

The movie will first be released in Japan, then internationally.

Back after approximately 27 years!

The original series focuses on basketball and follows Hanamichi Sakuragi, a high school delinquent who joins the basketball team. He decides to join because of a girl, Haruko Akagi, but along the way, he falls deeply in love with the sport.

The original sports manga series was published in 1990, and this year marks its 31st anniversary.

On September 18th, the manga was briefly in the news in the US and Japan when John Maddon, the Los Angeles Angels manager known for his mantra "Try not to suck," was seen sporting a T-shirt with a famous line that coach Mitsuyoshi Anzai said to Hanamichi: "If you suck, the first step on the path to being a pro is knowing that you suck." Star player Shohei Ohtani is known for being a Slam Dunk fan.

The manga and anime has fans of all generations and from every corner of the world, so I am sure many are looking forward to the movie premiere.

Until then, however, you can watch the promotional video, now available on Youtube: