On Friday, May 30, 2025, the Japanese cult classic Vampire Hunter D will arrive on the AMC Networks’ streaming platforms HIDIVE and Shudder, according to an official press release. This simultaneous release follows the film’s successful 40th anniversary re-release, which captivated audiences in over 600 theaters across the U.S. and Canada earlier this year on April 9, 10, and 13.
Vampire Hunter D is an original video animation, or OVA, adaptation of the best-selling sci-fi /horror novel series of the same name, written by author Hideyuki Kikuchi (Darkside Blues, Wicked City) and illustrated by Inkpot Award-winning artist Yoshitaka Amano (Final Fantasy, Guin Saga, Speed Racer). Over 100,000 copies of the novels have been sold worldwide since the first entry was published in 1983, according to Penguin Random House Canada.
Set in the year 12,090 A.D. in a post-apocalyptic, post-nuclear war future where vampires (known as “Nobles,” as they once ruled the Earth with their advanced science and dark magic), mutants, ancient demons, and their genetically-engineered creations “slither through a world of darkness,” Vampire Hunter D combines elements of the sci-fi, horror, dark fantasy, and western genres. The titular characters (okay, a very paired down version of them) are D, a “dhampir” (half-human, half-vampire), who travels as a vampire hunter for hire, and his Left Hand, a sentient, parasitic being living in the vampire hunter’s left palm who provides advice, comic relief, and sometimes supernatural help.
Directed by Toyoo Ashida, the OVA adaptation was first released in 1985. It’s considered one of the early examples of Japanese anime gaining a Western fanbase, helping to legitimize the direct-to-video animation market, according to Alternate Ending. The film brilliantly blends samurai action with gothic horror and has earned praise from both fans and critics. Today, it’s considered a landmark achievement in anime and a genre-defining work of horror.
“In 1985, Vampire Hunter D cemented its place in cinematic history as a truly genre-defining work of horror,” said John Ledford, President of HIDIVE (as quoted by Animation Magazine). “We’re thrilled to celebrate the 40th anniversary of Vampire Hunter D and partner with both Shudder and Iconic Events Releasing to bring this seminal film to both horror and anime fans across the U.S. and Canada.”
Vampire Hunter D’s official synopsis reads:
In the year 12,090 A.D., technology and the supernatural have overtaken the world, leaving the land desolate and despotic. The remnants of humanity are scattered into small communities and live in fear of vampires who compose the ruling Nobility. When Count Magnus Lee tastes the blood of Doris Lang, she is forcibly chosen to be his next wife. In an effort to escape her ill-gotten fate, she hires a mysterious vampire hunter known only as D, who comes from a peculiar lineage.
For its 40th anniversary, HIDIVE and Shudder are releasing to viewers a digitally remastered version of the original Vampire Hunter D OVA, crafted by Sentai Filmworks in 2015 when the company acquired the film’s North American rights from Streamline Pictures and Urban Vision. This version will be available on demand with Japanese audio and English subtitles, as well as an English dub, starting Friday, May 30, 2025, at 7:00 GMT in the U.S., Canada, U.K., Ireland, Australia, and New Zealand.
Watch the trailer below:
Vampire Hunter D will simultaneously premiere on HIDIVE and Shudder on Friday, May 30, 2025.
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