The official X (formerly Twitter) account for the live-action series adaptation of Yarō Abe’s Shinya Shokudō (The Midnight Diner or La Cantine de Minuit) manga revealed that a new season has been greenlit, which is scheduled to debut this fall. The new show is the sixth live-action series for the manga, with the last one debuting seven years ago in 2019. Kaoru Kobayashi returns to reprise his role as Master.
Image via Midnight Diner live-action series’ X/Twitter account
©安倍夜郎「深夜食堂」／小学館ビッグコミックオリジナル ©安倍夜郎・小学館／「深夜食堂 ６」製作委員会
Netflix began streaming the fifth live-action series in October 2019. Jōji Matsuoka, Nobuhiro Yamashita, and Shōtarō Kobayashi returned from previous series to direct the fifth one. The fourth series began streaming on Netflix under the title Midnight Diner: Tokyo Stories in 2016.
Abe’s manga centers on the proprietor of a small, mysterious cafeteria in Shinjuku and his customers. The cafeteria opens at midnight to fix customers any dish they request. The manga was nominated for the bookseller-selected Manga Taishō (“Cartoon Grand Prize”) in 2009. The manga was also nominated for Angoulême’s Best Comic Award and Audience Award in 2018.
The manga also inspired two live-action films starring Kaoru Kobayashi as Master. A Chinese live-action film adaptation of the manga opened in China in 2019. Well Go USA released the Chinese live-action film on Blu-ray Disc in 2021.
Sources: Midnight Diner live-action series’ X/Twitter account, Comic Natalie
