Written and produced by two-time Academy Award nominee Yoshiaki Nishimura (“The Tale of The Princess Kaguya,” “When Marnie Was There”), “The Imaginary” will certainly draw in audiences familiar with the lush, colorful worlds of fantasy that high-profile anime features are known for, but what grabbed me, personally, was the introduction of “the one thing that imagination can never defeat — reality.” Imagination is often presented as a cure or savior in stories, where believing in the impossible is a respite from the harsh cruelties of the world around us. Seldom do these stories treat the reality of, well, reality as a formidable foe to the existence of imaginary friends. 

The trailer also introduces a dark, almost ghostly presence, one that resembles many of the horrifying ghosts from the J-Horror boom of the 2000s like Samara in “Ringu/The Ring” and Kayako in “Ju-On/The Grudge.” This feels like a first for all-ages entertainment, and I’m thrilled. Considering she shares space with our imaginary hero, she seems to be an imaginary nightmare … what kind of person would imagine this? Hold me, I’m scared.

Netflix also went all-out for the English dub voice cast, featuring Louie Rudge-Buchanan (Rudger), Evie Kiszel (Amanda), Hayley Atwell (Lizzie), Sky Katz (Emily), Jeremy Swift (Mr Bunting), Kal Penn (Zinzan), LeVar Burton (The Old Dog), Jane Singer (Granny Downbeat), Ruby Barnhill (Aurora), Roger Craig Smith (Snowflake), Courtenay Taylor (Cruncher-of-Bones), and Miles Nibbe (John). To make things sweeter, A Great Big World and Rachel Platten have collaborated on an original theme song, “Nothing’s Impossible,” which I imagine will also be getting the Oscar push. I’m excited about this new movie, and you should be too.

“The Imaginary” arrives in select theaters on June 28th, 2024 with a streaming release on Netflix starting July 5, 2024.