Picture Credit: Netflix
As part of its massive 2026 Japanese content slate, Netflix has unveiled Straight to Hell, a biographical drama series spanning six decades of fame, fortune, and fear. Chronicling the life of Kazuko Hosoki, the fortune-teller who held a nation in her thrall, the series arrives this April. Here’s everything we know so far.
The series is a major in-house production for Netflix, directed by Tomoyuki Takimoto (Ikigami: The Ultimate Limit, Brain Man) and Norichika Ohba, with a script from Manaka Monaka. It is produced by Tatsuya Banno and Tomoo Fukatsu under the Django Film banner.
What is the plot of Straight to Hell?
Straight to Hell is a biographical drama spanning 60 years, from the mid-20th century to the early 21st century. It tells the untold story of Kazuko Hosoki, a real-life cultural phenomenon in Japan known for her “Six-Star Divination” practice and her ominous, blunt catchphrase: “You’ll go to hell.”
The series tracks her trajectory from post-war poverty to becoming the “Queen of Ginza” nightclub scene, eventually dominating television and publishing with a Guinness World Record. However, the synopsis teases the darker side of her success: accusations of fraud and rumored connections to the criminal underworld. The show asks: Was she a savior or a devil?
The narrative is framed through the eyes of Minori Uozumi, a writer tasked with ghostwriting Hosoki’s autobiography, leading to a tense battle of wills between the two women.
Cast of Straight to Hell
Netflix has assembled a massive ensemble of recognizable talent for this production, featuring alumni from some of the platform’s biggest global hits like Alice in Borderland and The Naked Director.
- Erika Toda (Death Note, Code Blue, SPEC) stars as the lead, Kazuko Hosoki. Toda portrays the fortune-teller’s unstoppable drive and the loneliness born from her greed.
- Sairi Ito (Netflix’s The Naked Director, Hotel Royal) plays Minori Uozumi, the writer tasked with ghostwriting Hosoki’s autobiography.
- Toko Miura (Drive My Car, Weathering with You)
- Show Kasamatsu (Netflix’s The Naked Director, Tokyo Vice, Love You as the World Ends)
- Yoshihiko Hosoda (Netflix’s Alice in Borderland, Netflix’s The Naked Director)
- Kimiko Yo (Netflix’s Call Me Chihiro, Netflix’s The Journalist, Netflix’s Sanctuary)
- Renji Ishibashi (Netflix’s The Naked Director, Outrage, Netflix’s Homunculus)
- Toma Ikuta (Netflix’s We Couldn’t Become Adults, The Fallen Angel)
- Kazuya Takahashi (Netflix’s The Journalist, Tokyo Vice)
- Tetta Sugimoto (Netflix’s Scams, Outrage, Departures)
- Miwako Ichikawa (Shin Godzilla, Rent-a-Cat)
- Yasuko Tomita (Netflix’s Switched, The Limit of Sleeping Beauty)
- Eita Okuno (Crows Explode, Gintama)
Rounding out the extensive cast are Kentaro Tamura, Ayumu Nakajima, Gaku Hosokawa, Erika Shumoto, Miho Kanazawa, Tasuku Nagaoka, and Yuko Nakamura.
Production Credits
- Directors: Tomoyuki Takimoto, Norichika Ohba
- Writer: Manaka Monaka
- Music: Hibiki Inamoto
- Producers: Tatsuya Banno, Tomoo Fukatsu
- Production Company: Django Film
- Planned and Produced by: Netflix
In a statement, director Tomoyuki Takimoto praised Toda’s performance: “Her portrayal helped me make discoveries about how this generational trickster came to be.”
When will Straight to Hell be released on Netflix?
Netflix has confirmed that Straight to Hell will be released globally on Monday, April 27, 2026.
Are you looking forward to watching Straight to Hell on Netflix? Let us know in the comments below!
