The beloved manga/anime franchise Lupin III received its first CG animated film in Japan in December. However, it's now poised for a release in the United States.

Animation production company GKIDS has acquired the North American distribution rights to the anime film from Japanese studio TMS Entertainment, intending to release it in theaters later this year, with both its original Japanese language track with English subtitles and a new, dubbed English language track.

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"As someone who has been a fan of Lupin III since The Castle of Cagliostro, I was blown away by quality of animation and storytelling in Lupin the 3rd: The First," GKIDS President David Jesteadt said in a statement. "Director Takashi Yamazaki has taken such incredible care and detail in creating Lupin's first adventure in CG, and I am hopeful that audiences fall in love with the film as much as I have."

Based the popular master thief created by Monkey Punch, Lupin III: The First sees the burglar team up with a woman named Letizia to steal the Bresson Diary, an artifact that eluded past generations of Lupin's family decades earlier.

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"Lupin III has been stealing hearts of audiences of all ages for over 50 years, and we're proud to be able to present the latest evolution of the world's greatest thief," TMS Entertainment Vice President Masami Tokunaga added. "We are truly excited to be collaborating with GKIDS to bring this amazing film to our fans in North America."

Lupin III: The First is written and directed by Takashi Yamazaki (Dragon Quest: Your Story). The English dub has yet to receive a release date.