Pokémon franchise announces ‘Wild Card’ film focusing on TCG for 2027

The Pokémon universe is preparing for a new feature film: “Pokémon: Wild Card”. The announcement of the title was made on August 31, 2026, during the closing ceremony of the 2026 Pokémon World Cup, which took place in San Francisco, California. The production is scheduled to launch in 2027.

“For the first time in seven years, a new Pokémon movie is on the way,” said Tsunekazu Ishihara, president and CEO of The Pokémon Company, during the event. He added that the protagonist of the production is a Pokémon TCG player who “battles and strives to be a champion”, just like the competitors present at the Worlds.

A brief 39-second trailer for “Pokémon: Wild Card” was shown during the ceremony, revealing central plot elements. The images showed the focus on the collectible card game (TCG), the presence of the Pokémon Mimikyu and the main character on a game table, with a card from the little monster in evidence.

The development of the film is in charge of the acclaimed studio CloverWorks, known for works such as “Bocchi the Rock”, “Horimiya” and “My Dress-Up Darling”. The direction is by Katsuhiko Kitada, with production by Story Inc. and character design by Akemi Hayashi. The trailer suggests an initial release “from 2027” and with possible extensions, indicating future news about the date and the film.

Although “Pokémon: Wild Card” was the only film revealed at the World Championships, another animated project in the franchise will also arrive in 2027. The series “Tales of Pokémon: The Misadventures of Sirfetch’d and Pichu”, previously announced in 2025, had new details and a trailer released during a panel at Pokémon XP this year, confirming its global exhibition on Disney+.