Gintama the Movie 2026: Yoshiwara in Flames is reaching a bigger audience. Netflix announced that the film, which remakes the anime's Yoshiwara in Flames arc, will arrive in more regions across Asia from December 1, exclusively on the service. Check out the official post down below:
The post does not name the new countries. The film opened in Japanese theaters on February 13, 2026, and premiered on Netflix on August 27, 2026. Because it retells a story that first aired in 2009, it fits into a franchise that now spans 367 TV episodes, 4 anime films, live-action adaptations and a spinoff series.
What Is Gintama?
Hideaki Sorachi's manga ran in Weekly Shonen Jump and ended with its 77th volume. It is set in an alternate version of the late Edo period, after aliens called the Amanto invade Japan. The shogun surrenders, the aliens take control, and samurai are banned from carrying swords in public.
Gintoki Sakata, a former rebel samurai, now runs Yorozuya, an odd-jobs business in Edo's Kabuki district, with his apprentice Shinpachi Shimura and Kagura, a teenage alien girl from the Yato clan. The 3 take any job that pays the rent, which usually still goes unpaid. Along the way they keep crossing paths with the Shinsengumi police force and Gintoki's old war comrades, including the rebel Kotaro Katsura and the far more dangerous Shinsuke Takasugi.
The series mixes standalone comedy episodes with long serious arcs that build on Gintoki's past and the war against the Amanto.
Gintama Watch Order By Release
The anime was produced by Sunrise through Gintama' and by BN Pictures from Gintama° onward. In Japan, the TV series aired as 1 continuous run, so the "seasons" used by streaming services outside Japan follow international releases, not Japanese broadcast breaks.
- Gintama (2006 to 2010): Episodes 1 to 201, aired on TV Tokyo from April 4, 2006, to March 25, 2010.
- Gintama: The Movie (2010): A retelling of the Benizakura arc, released in Japan in April 2010.
- Gintama' (2011 to 2012): Episodes 202 to 252.
- Gintama': Enchosen (2012 to 2013): Episodes 253 to 265.
- Gintama: The Movie: The Final Chapter: Be Forever Yorozuya (2013): An original story with a script by Sorachi, released on July 6, 2013.
- Gintama° (2015 to 2016): Episodes 266 to 316.
- Gintama. (2017): Episodes 317 to 328.
- Gintama. Porori-hen (2017): Episodes 329 to 341, covering comedy arcs that had been skipped before the Shogun Assassination arc.
- Gintama. Shirogane no Tamashii-hen (2018): Episodes 342 to 367, the Silver Soul arc.
- Gintama: The Semi-Final (2021): A 2-episode special tied to the final film.
- Gintama: The Very Final (2021): Released on January 8, 2021, it adapts the end of the manga with new story elements and closes out the TV story.
- Gintama: Mr. Ginpachi's Zany Class (2025): A spinoff based on the light novel, aired from October to December 2025.
- Gintama the Movie 2026: Yoshiwara in Flames (2026): A new version of the Yoshiwara in Flames arc.
Be Forever Yorozuya was released between Enchosen and Gintama°, so it fits there in release order, and The Very Final picks up directly from the Silver Soul arc. The 2026 film retells episodes 139 to 146, so it covers the same events as that stretch of the first series. The Very Final was covered in GINTAMA THE FINAL: A New Trailer Offers Glimpses At The Film's Theme Song And Finale.
The official Gintama channel released the main trailer for the 2026 film:
The Story Arcs To Prioritize
Most of Gintama's early episodes are standalone comedy, while the serious arcs carry the main story forward.
- Benizakura arc (episodes 58 to 61): Katsura is attacked by a swordsman carrying a living sword, which leads Gintoki into his first clash with Takasugi's faction.
- Shinsengumi Crisis arc (episodes 101 to 105): A power struggle inside the Shinsengumi that centers on Hijikata.
- Yoshiwara in Flames arc (episodes 139 to 146): Gintoki helps Seita find his mother in the underground red-light district and fights Housen of the Yato clan, which also introduces Kagura's brother Kamui.
- Shogun Assassination arc (episodes 300 to 307): A plot against Shogun Tokugawa Shigeshige that pulls in the Shinsengumi, the Mimawarigumi and Takasugi's Kiheitai.
- Farewell, Shinsengumi arc (episodes 308 to 316): The fallout for the Shinsengumi, ending Gintama°.
- Rakuyo Decisive Battle arc (episodes 317 to 328): The confrontation with the Yato and Takasugi's group, which makes up the full 12-episode run of Gintama. in 2017.
- Silver Soul arc (episodes 342 to 367): The final war, which leads directly into The Very Final.
Many side characters and running jokes from the gag episodes return in the serious arcs. The comedy arcs in Porori-hen were skipped when the anime first reached that point in the manga and aired later as their own series.
Yoshiwara In Flames, Old And New
The 2026 film starts in Yoshiwara Togenkyo, a huge underground red-light district outside the reach of the law, where it is always night. Gintoki meets Seita, a young pickpocket searching for the mother he was separated from, who may be Hinowa, Yoshiwara's top courtesan. The district is ruled by Housen, the King of the Night. Netflix's synopsis reads: "In a hidden red-light district, Gintoki and his friends battle a powerful foe to help a young boy reunite with his missing mother and free the oppressed."
BN Pictures animated the film, with Naoya Ando directing, longtime series director Yoichi Fujita supervising, Taku Kishimoto writing the script and Shinji Takeuchi handling character design and chief animation direction. Sorachi is credited as original author and "super advisor gorilla," and SUPER BEAVER performs the theme song, "Sanzen."
Tomokazu Sugita, Daisuke Sakaguchi and Rie Kugimiya return as Gintoki, Shinpachi and Kagura. The Yoshiwara cast includes Yuko Kaida as Tsukuyo, Yuko Sanpei as Seita, Kikuko Inoue as Hinowa and Banjo Ginga as Housen, with Satoshi Hino as Kamui and Yoshitada Otsuka as Abuto. Akira Ishida, Susumu Chiba, Kazuya Nakai, Kenichi Suzumura and Tetsuharu Ota also return as Katsura, Kondo, Hijikata, Okita and Yamazaki. Netflix Anime shared a clip of the Yato fight from the film:
Where To Stream Gintama
Netflix's US pages list Gin Tama with 3 seasons and Gintama the Movie 2026: Yoshiwara in Flames. Availability changes by region, and the December 1 expansion adds more Asian countries for the 2026 film.
The newest TV project is Gintama: Mr. Ginpachi's Zany Class, a school-comedy spinoff that recasts the characters as students and Gintoki as their teacher. Here is Crunchyroll's official trailer:
The end of Sorachi's manga was covered in GINTAMA Manga Series Is Ending With Its 77th Volume.
Which Gintama arc is your favorite: Benizakura, Yoshiwara in Flames, Farewell Shinsengumi or the Silver Soul finale?
Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.