Who directed the original Japanese Pokémon feature film, Pokémon: The First Movie?

Kunihiko Yuyama directed the original Japanese Pokémon feature film, Pokémon: The First Movie.

The 1998 animated film is known in Japan as Mewtwo Strikes Back and was the first theatrical film in the Pokémon anime series. Yuyama directed the movie after serving as chief director of the television anime, giving him a central role in shaping the franchise’s early animated style.

The story follows Mewtwo, a genetically engineered Pokémon who questions its identity and purpose. Ash, Pikachu, and their friends are invited to an island where Mewtwo challenges them and other Pokémon Trainers. The film’s themes include cloning, identity, and the consequences of treating living beings as experiments.

Takeshi Shudo wrote the screenplay, but he did not direct the film. The English-language release was titled Pokémon: The First Movie and arrived in North America in 1999, which is why the Japanese and English dates are sometimes mixed up.