A new Pokémon movie featuring a surprisingly talkative Zarude will debut on Netflix on Oct. 8.
Pokémon: Secrets of the Jungle sees Ash Ketchum and his Pikachu exploring a vast jungle filled with Pokémon. There they meet Koko, a young boy who was abandoned in the jungle as an infant and raised by a wild, talking Zarude whom he calls "Dada." Ash, Koko, and the jungle's native Pokémon must come together to protect the area from a greedy research company that is trying to seize the jungle's resources, which includes a miraculous healing spring, for themselves.
Secrets of the Jungle's soundtrack will feature two original songs, "Always Safe" and "No Matter What," from American singer/songwriter Cyn. Cyn has previously opened for Katy Perry and has had songs featured on the soundtracks to movies such as Birds of Prey and on the Netflix series To All the Boys: P.S. I Still Love You.
Players of Pokémon Sword and Shield will be able to catch the movie's "Dada" Zarude for themselves by signing up for the Pokémon Trainers Club e-mail newsletter. A special shiny Celebi will also be distributed to celebrate the release of the movie. The Pokémon were previously given out in Japan to theater-goers who preordered a ticket to the movie's premiere. A tie-in promotion to Pokémon Go will also be announced at a later date.
Pokémon: Secrets of the Jungle is the twenty-third movie in the seemingly perpetually popular Pokémon franchise, which is celebrating the 25th anniversary of its debut the year. The next season of the main Pokémon anime will also premiere on Netflix this fall, and The Pokémon Company will also debut a new animated series, Pokémon Evolutions, that features characters and Pokémon from all eight generations of the video games.
The Pokémon video games continue to celebrate the series' big anniversary year with the release of multiple titles. In addition to the long awaited New Pokémon Snap and the online MOBA Pokémon Unite, Nintendo and The Pokémon Company will also release the DS remakes Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl this November. Those games will be followed up with the release of Pokémon Legends: Arceus, which is being developed internally at the Game Freak, the developer that created the original Pokémon game. Arceus represents the next evolution of the franchise and features new battle mechanics and a brand new, open-world style structure for players to explore. The game will be released for the Nintendo Switch this January.
Source: The Pokemon Company
