Before there was a PlayStation 4 remake that blew the doors off its own canon, Final Fantasy VII lived on through various spinoffs that expanded the world of the classic RPG. One of those was Advent Children, the 2005 CG film which followed on from the events of the original game. If you’ve never seen it, or it’s been forever since you have, you’re in luck—it’s getting a brief return to theaters next year.
Earlier in the week, Square Enix revealed it would screen Advent Children in Japanese theaters from January 19, 2024 through February 1. This’ll be the 2021 remaster (aka the Complete version that runs in 4K) playing, and it’ll be the first time this specific version is getting a theatrical run. Social media users spotted that the movie will be coming stateside a few weeks later on February 21, though at time of writing, it’s not clear how long it’ll play here in the US. Considering the release of Final Fantasy VII Rebirth is the following week on February 29, one has to reason that it won’t be that long of a run.
This past September, Rebirth’s creative director Tetsuya Nomura—who also directed the remake and Advent—said the remake trilogy will eventually link up with that film. While the games won’t lead to Advent Children specifically, he did indicate that elements from the movie will eventually become part of the remake canon as it was for the original game. On that front, he vaguely told fans they “don’t need to worry about that.” Either way, the film returning to theaters before the game comes out indicates that we’ll be getting some sizable Advent Children crumbs at some point during the adventure. Though knowing Nomura, that may be too generous a term for whatever he’s got cooking up.
Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children Complete will comes to Japanese theaters on January 19, 2024, and is expected to reach the US on February 21. And Final Fantasy VII Rebirth will come to the PlayStation 5 on February 29.
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