Overview
- Lionsgate and director Destin Daniel Cretton opened a worldwide search for actors to play Team 7 — Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura — in a casting announcement reported July 9–10, 2026.
- Cretton is writing, directing and producing the film, and producers attached include Avi Arad, Ari Arad, Emmy Yu, Jeremy Latcham and Jeyun Munford.
- Masashi Kishimoto publicly praised the development and said he is excited to meet the cast, and reports say he has been invited to offer creative input during production.
- No performers or release date have been confirmed, and outlets note practical casting questions such as the characters’ ages, whether to seek global versus Japan‑centered casting, and how to stage the story’s more fantastical elements in live action.
- The update ends a long dormancy for the project that dates to an earlier 2014 effort and a 2024 reannouncement, and it raises stakes for fans and the studio because Naruto is a global manga franchise with more than 250 million copies sold.