The anime was originally slated for April 2026.
The official X (formerly Twitter) account of the upcoming isekai fantasy anime series “Though I Am an Inept Villainess” has unveiled an unfortunate update regarding its broadcast date. The anime is confirmed to be delayed to July 2026, instead of premiering in April as originally announced.
Announcement cites delayed production
The announcement, through a machine translation, reads:
Thank you very much for your continued patronage.
The TV anime “Though I Am an Inept Villainess”, scheduled to start broadcasting in April 2026, due to delays in the production, we have decided to postpone the broastcast start date.
We would like to offer our deepest apologies to everyone who was looking forward to the broadcast regarding this matter.
The new broadcast is scheduled to start in July 2026.
As the production committee, all staff will work together to create a [film] that meets everyone's expectations, and we hope you will continue to support the series.
The anime is adapted from Satsuki Nakamura’s light novel series of the same name. The series has already unveiled its main cast:
- Manaka Iwami as Kou Reirin
- Natsumi Kawaida as Shu Keigetsu
Mitsue Yamazaki directs the anime, while Yoshiko Nakamura handles series composition. Ai Kikuchi is designing the characters in this Doga Kobo production.
The anime is adapted from Satsuki Nakamura’s light novel series of the same name. The printed versions of the books include illustrations by YukiKana, and is published by Ichijinsha. A manga adaptation illustrated by Ei Ohitsuji has also been published. Seven Seas Entertainment publishes both the novel and the manga in English, and describes the story as:
In the Kingdom of Ei, five clans put forth their maidens as imperial consorts—but only one will be crowned empress. Just when frail and beautiful “court butterfly” Kou Reirin seems poised to marry the crown prince, jealous “court rat” Shu Keigetsu steals her body! Reirin wakes up in the dungeons as the conspirator, and things look dire…or do they? Now that she’s got a robust new body, not even the looming threat of execution can stop her!