The Long Hair in the Attic Gets Live-Action Film

TL;DR, Toei, Thai studio M Studio and South Korea’s Showbox are co-producing a live-action adaptation of Junji Ito’s The Long Hair in the Attic. Director Sitisiri Mongkolsiri is attached, with development finishing this year and filming scheduled for 2027.

The Long Hair in the Attic live-action film was announced by Toei, Thailand’s M Studio, and South Korea’s Showbox. Thai director Sitisiri Mongkolsiri is attached to helm. The companies say development will wrap this year, with filming scheduled for 2027.

The move brings Junji Ito The Long Hair in the Attic to a cross-border production model spanning Japan, Thailand, and Korea. Ito’s compact, brutal one-shots reward tight, director-led execution, which makes this partnership and director choice matter to horror fans. The story centers on Chiemi, a long-haired girl whose breakup curdles into body horror in an attic.

It previously reached screens in a 2000 Japanese film and a 2023 anime episode, so a new film will revisit the classic short.

The Long Hair in the Attic live-action film: who announced it and the timeline

Toei, Thailand’s M Studio, and South Korea’s Showbox jointly announced a feature adaptation of Junji Ito’s horror one-shot. Thai filmmaker Sitisiri Mongkolsiri will direct. The Long Hair in the Attic live-action film will finish development this year, according to the partners.

According to the announcement, filming 2027 is the target. No cast, locations, or distribution plan has been shared. The Toei M Studio Showbox collaboration sets a simple timeline, while keeping creative details under wraps until development closes.

Only core milestones are public, which keeps updates focused and verifiable. For comparison within recent page-to-screen moves, see the Tezuka live-action film. The teams did not disclose format specifics beyond this being a live-action film.

• Co-producers: Toei in Japan, M Studio in Thailand, and Showbox in South Korea, coordinating production across territories.
• Director: Sitisiri Mongkolsiri, named in the joint notice as the creative lead guiding development toward the 2027 shoot.
• Source material: Junji Ito’s horror one-shot that centers on a breakup, obsession, and hair that refuses control.
• Development: set to complete this year per the companies, aligning budgets, schedules, and key pre-production assets.
• Production: principal photography planned for 2027, with start month and duration not yet confirmed.
• Creative details: scriptwriter, department heads, and full casting remain to be announced.
• Release: no domestic or international rollout, format specifics, or platform partners have been revealed.
• Announcement reference: the collaboration was reported via Japanese outlet Comic Natalie.
• Genre position: intimate horror emphasizing fixation, isolation, and corporeal dread rather than spectacle.
• Scope: a live-action film translating the manga’s compact structure into screen-ready scenes.

Sitisiri Mongkolsiri will direct The Long Hair in the Attic

Director Sitisiri Mongkolsiri arrives with range across genre. His credits include The Red Line, Hunger, and Inhuman Kiss. The Sitisiri Mongkolsiri Junji Ito pairing points to careful atmosphere, measured rhythms, and attention to how fear creeps rather than crashes.

Translating Ito’s menace favors control, texture, and point of view over constant shocks. Mongkolsiri’s projects lean on sensory detail and mounting dread, traits that suit a Junji Ito live-action film. Expect clear blocking, lived-in spaces, and performances that carry the unease.

The producers have not outlined setting, language, or effects methodology, so specifics will follow development lock. What is clear is the director’s steadiness with intimate, character-led tension. That grounding can support hair-driven horror without smothering the human stakes.

• Selected credits: Inhuman Kiss, Hunger, and The Red Line, spanning supernatural romance, social drama, and thriller.
• Craft: measured pacing, careful blocking, and sound-driven tension that lets unease accumulate.
• Character work: conflicted leads and strained relationships, aligning with this story’s breakup catalyst.
• Horror approach: favors suggestion, tactile detail, and aftermath over relentless jump scares.
• Collaboration context: directing within a Japan, Thailand, and Korea co-production while honoring Ito’s visual grammar.
• Visual approach: not detailed yet by the producers, including effects choices and hair-centric staging.
• Performance focus: actors grounded in domestic spaces where ordinary routines curdle into menace.
• Key hires to watch: cinematographer, special effects, hair and makeup, and sound design leadership.
• Deliverables ahead: script lock, casting announcements, and production design tests before the 2027 schedule.
• Post pipeline: editing and mix plans are unannounced by the producers at this stage.

The Long Hair in the Attic manga history and past adaptations

Junji Ito published Yaneura no Nagai Kami in 1988 in Asahi Sonorama’s Monthly Halloween. The short follows Chiemi, dumped by her boyfriend after growing her hair to please him. When her sister fetches scissors to cut it, a scream leads to a decapitated body.

The Long Hair in the Attic manga has seen multiple screen versions. Japan produced a live-action film in 2000. The tale returned in 2023 as an episode of Junji Ito Maniac: Japanese Tales of the Macabre, keeping its unnerving premise in circulation.

English readers have encountered the story three times across publishers. The reprints track how a compact, cruel premise travels between markets and mediums without losing bite.

• 1988: Debuted in Monthly Halloween, published by Asahi Sonorama.
• 2000: Japanese live-action film adapted the short for local audiences.
• 2023: Anime episode in Junji Ito Maniac: Japanese Tales of the Macabre.
• English 2000: ComicsOne’s Flesh Colored Horror collected the story in North America.
• English 2006: Dark Horse’s Museum of Terror volume 3 reprinted the tale.
• English 2021: Viz Media’s Deserter: Junji Ito Story Collection featured a fresh edition.
• Core motif: intimate body horror yoked to identity, resentment, and domesticated spaces.
• Title use: commonly referenced in English as The Long Hair in the Attic.
• Catalog fit: a standalone one-shot frequently anthologized with Ito’s early works.
• Format lineage: brevity makes it a staple in print anthologies and screen omnibus projects.

Source: ANN