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Weathering with You (2019) movie poster

Plot Summary

Weathering with You (2019) Plot Summary Explained

Release, runtime and language
2019 · 112 mins · Japanese
Echo score 78
JustWatch #10,473 442
Directed by
Makoto Shinkai
Starring
Sumi Shimamoto, Chieko Baisho, Kotaro Daigo, Mone Kamishiraishi, Sakura Kiryu, Yuki Kaji
Budget
$11.1M

During his freshman year of high school, Hodaka leaves his hometown and moves to Tokyo, where he struggles to make ends meet. The city is plagued by constant rain, mirroring his own difficult circumstances. He finds work for an occult magazine and unexpectedly meets Hina, a spirited young woman with the extraordinary ability to control the weather and bring sunshine. As they navigate their newfound abilities, they discover a secret that connects them and threatens to upend their world.

On this page (6)
  1. 1 Where to watch
  2. 2 What happens: full plot
  3. 3 Plot questions answered
  4. 4 Movie threads
  5. 5 Movies like Weathering with You
  6. 6 Every angle

Where to watch

Where to Watch Weathering with You (2019)

Where can you watch Weathering with You? Stream, rent or buy it in the US, including on HBO Max, Hoopla and Amazon Video: current JustWatch availability with up-to-date prices.

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Full plot summary · contains spoilers

What Happens in Weathering with You: Full Plot Summary

The whole story of Weathering with You (2019) explained, from the opening scene to the final frame: every key event, every twist and what it all adds up to. Read it as a quick recap before the sequel, to check a scene you missed, or to finally understand what really happened.

In June 2021, a young high school student named Hodaka Morishima finds himself running away from home, seeking a fresh start in Tokyo. His journey begins with a perilous encounter during a heavy rainstorm when his ferry is caught in a torrential downpour, almost sweeping him away. Fortunately, he is saved by Keisuke Suga, who provides him with a business card and advises him to call if he needs work. Despite this, Hodaka struggles to find stable employment in the busy city, but his situation takes an unexpected turn when he discovers an abandoned Makarov PM handgun—an illegal weapon that he keeps for protection, even though guns are outlawed.

During his search for help, Hodaka crosses paths with Hina Amano, a compassionate young woman working at a McDonald's. She quickly shows empathy for his situation and offers him free food, which becomes a small act of kindness amid his struggles. Soon after, Suga hires Hodaka to assist him in putting together a small occult magazine that investigates strange phenomena, including the unpredictable weather patterns plaguing Tokyo. As they dig into local legends, they come across the story of "sunshine girls" who have the mysterious power to clear the skies and bring sunshine on demand.

Hodaka witnesses a distressing scene where Hina is being coerced into working at a club. In a panic, he fires his gun at the club owner, narrowly missing him, which leaves Hodaka shaken and frightened. To protect himself, Hodaka throws the gun away. Hina then takes Hodaka to an abandoned building called Yoyogi Kaikan, where they find a shrine on the roof. To his amazement, she demonstrates her unusual ability by praying and clearing the sky of clouds, revealing her remarkable power to control the weather through prayer.

Hina, an orphan living alone with her younger brother Nagi, has been trying to keep their lives afloat amid their financial struggles. Observing her hardships, Hodaka proposes a bold idea: they could start a business offering to clear the weather for social events, weddings, and outdoor gatherings. Their venture quickly becomes popular, bringing in more requests than they can handle. However, as Hina's fame grows, she is filmed for television, which results in their website being flooded with requests. Recognizing her need for rest, they decide to temporarily pause their operation.

Meanwhile, Suga and Natsumi are investigating the phenomena further. They interview an old shrine priest who shares the legend of "Weather Maidens"—women who possess the extraordinary ability to manipulate rain. The priest warns that such powers come with a heavy toll, hinting at the potential sacrifice involved.

Amid their crises, police begin to search for Hodaka, who has been reported missing by his family. Law enforcement officials track him via security footage of him using the illegal gun. They eventually locate Hina’s apartment and interrogate her, realizing that without a legal guardian, she and Nagi could be taken away by social services. Suga, who is also visited by the police, makes the difficult decision to fire Hodaka, explaining that the authorities suspect him of kidnapping. He gives Hodaka a sum of severance pay before he leaves.

Feeling cornered, Hodaka, Hina, and Nagi decide to run away together, as relentless, unnatural weather—ranging from continuous rain to snow—closes in on Tokyo. The city declares a state of emergency due to the severe and abnormal climate chaos. Hodaka is eventually caught by the police, but Hina intervenes, unintentionally using her powers to destroy a police van with lightning to save him. They find shelter in a hotel using the cash Hodaka has received from Suga, where Hina confesses that her body is gradually turning transparent with each use of her power—a sacrifice she makes to bring normal weather back to the city.

The next morning, Hina has disappeared, and the relentless rain has stopped. The police catch up with Hodaka at the hotel, and he is taken into custody. Nagi is placed into a children’s counseling center as Hina’s presence becomes a distant memory. Overcome with the realization that he loves Hina, Hodaka escapes from custody with help from Natsumi, Suga’s niece. In a daring rescue, he is saved from apprehension by Suga himself, who, inspired by Hodaka’s determination, helps him break free.

Hodaka then ventures to the rooftop shrine where he finds Hina praying. He begs her to return with him, urging her to let go of her worries about the weather and start living for herself. As Hodaka pleads, Hina joins him, and together they step through the torii gate into the sky, symbolizing hope and possibility. However, their reunion is short-lived—once back at the shrine, all five are arrested, and the heavy rains resume, flooding much of Tokyo.

Hodaka is sentenced to a three-year probation and sent back to his home on Kōzu-shima. Years pass, and Tokyo continues to be submerged under endless rains, with much of the city beneath water. It’s now spring 2024, and Hodaka, having completed his probation, graduates from high school and returns to Tokyo to attend college. He reconnects with Suga, who has now expanded his weather-related business, and is encouraged to find Hina once again. Eventually, Hodaka spots her praying on a street overlooking the drowned city. They reunite, and Hodaka promises her that everything will be alright, rekindling hope for their future together amid the flooded landscape that once kept them apart.

Last updated: August 19, 2025 at 05:12

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Plot questions answered

Weathering with You Plot Explained: Your Questions Answered

The questions people ask most about Weathering with You (2019): what happens in the confusing scenes, why the characters do what they do, the twists, hidden details and what the ending means. Each answer contains spoilers.

Q1

Why did Hina disappear after the rain stopped?

Hina disappeared because her body had become completely transparent from using her weather-controlling powers too much. Each time she prayed to clear the sky, she sacrificed more of her physical form. When the rain finally stopped after her ultimate sacrifice, she had vanished entirely, leaving only her clothes behind at the hotel.

Foreshadowing: The old shrine priest had warned that Weather Maidens pay a heavy price for controlling rain, foreshadowing Hina's eventual disappearance.

  • hina disappearance
  • weather maiden sacrifice
  • transparent body
  • weather powers
Q2

What sacrifice do the Weather Maidens have to make?

According to the legend shared by the old shrine priest, Weather Maidens can control rain but must sacrifice their physical bodies. The more they use their powers, the more transparent they become until they eventually vanish completely. Hina experiences this firsthand as her body turns transparent with each prayer.

Foreshadowing: The legend is introduced early when Suga and Natsumi interview the priest, establishing the tragic cost of Hina's abilities.

  • weather maidens
  • legend
  • sacrifice
  • transparent body
  • powers cost
Q3

Why did Tokyo continue to flood even after Hina vanished?

The flooding continued because Hina's sacrifice only temporarily restored normal weather. The heavy rains resumed after she and Hodaka were arrested at the shrine. By the time Hodaka returns in 2024, Tokyo remains largely submerged under constant rain, showing that her sacrifice was not enough to reverse the long-term climate catastrophe.

Foreshadowing: The priest's warning about the heavy toll of weather powers implied the problem would persist despite individual sacrifices.

  • tokyo flooding
  • rain continues
  • climate disaster
  • flooded city
Q4

Why was Hodaka arrested at the end of the movie?

Hodaka was arrested because he escaped from police custody and hijacked a police van while trying to reach Hina at the rooftop shrine. After reuniting with Hina, both of them were taken into custody at the scene. He received a three-year probation sentence for his actions, which included illegal gun possession and escaping from law enforcement.

Foreshadowing: The police had been tracking Hodaka since the gun incident at the club, building toward his eventual arrest.

  • hodaka arrest
  • probation
  • police custody
  • ending
Q5

How did Hina's powers cause such severe weather in Tokyo?

Hina's weather-controlling abilities work by sacrificing her body to change the weather. When she used her powers frequently to bring sunshine for events, the backlash caused unnatural and extreme weather patterns across Tokyo, including unseasonal snow and relentless rain. The more she used her powers, the more the weather destabilized, eventually forcing her to stop completely to restore balance.

Foreshadowing: The legend of Weather Maidens establishes that their powers affect the broader climate, not just local sunshine.

  • hina powers
  • extreme weather
  • rain
  • snow
  • weather manipulation
Q6

Why did the police suspect Hodaka of kidnapping Hina?

The police suspected kidnapping because Hodaka was a runaway from his home, was found in possession of an illegal gun, and was living with Hina and her younger brother Nagi without any legal guardians present. When they investigated Hina's apartment, they realized she had no parents and assumed Hodaka had abducted her, especially after discovering the gun footage.

Foreshadowing: Hodaka's decision to keep the illegal gun and his status as a missing teenager created the evidence needed for suspicion.

  • police investigation
  • kidnapping suspicion
  • missing person
  • gun
Q7

What happened to Nagi after the police found them?

After Hodaka was arrested and Hina disappeared, Nagi was placed into a children's counseling center because he had no legal guardian. Hina had been caring for him alone as his older sister after their parents died, so when she vanished, child services took custody of him.

Foreshadowing: The police threat to separate Hina and Nagi earlier, when they mentioned taking the children to social services, foreshadows this outcome.

  • nagi
  • children counseling center
  • orphan
  • social services
Q8

Why did Suga help Hodaka escape from police custody?

Suga helped Hodaka escape because he was moved by Hodaka's determination and genuine love for Hina. Despite having fired Hodaka to protect his business from police scrutiny, Suga couldn't ignore Hodaka's desperate plea to reach the shrine. He chose to act on his own conscience rather than let the police capture Hodaka.

Foreshadowing: Suga had shown sympathy for Hodaka throughout the film, including giving him work and severance pay, showing he cared about the boy's wellbeing.

  • suga escape help
  • keisuke surga
  • rescue
  • police chase
Q9

What was the meaning of the torii gate scene in the sky?

The torii gate represents a threshold between the mortal world and the divine or spiritual realm. When Hodaka steps through it to reach Hina in the sky, it symbolizes his commitment to their love and his willingness to cross any boundary to be with her. It also represents hope and the possibility of transcending their difficult circumstances.

Foreshadowing: The rooftop shrine with its torii gate had been established earlier as the place where Hina prayed, giving it spiritual significance.

  • torii gate
  • sky
  • threshold
  • spiritual
  • hopeness
Q10

Why did Hina's body become transparent?

Hina's body became transparent because using her Weather Maiden powers required a physical sacrifice. Each time she prayed to clear the sky, part of her body faded away. The transparency was a visual representation of her life force being used up to control the weather, eventually leading to her complete disappearance.

Foreshadowing: The old priest's warning about the heavy toll of Weather Maiden powers directly foreshadows this transparent transformation.

  • transparent
  • hina body
  • fading
  • sacrifice
  • weather maiden
Q11

Why did Hodaka return to Tokyo in 2024?

Hodaka returned to Tokyo in 2024 after completing his three-year probation and graduating high school. He came back to attend college and, more importantly, to find Hina again. His promise to her that everything would be alright drove his decision to return despite the city's flooding.

Foreshadowing: The film's epilogue sets up this return, showing Hodaka's commitment to finding Hina despite the years apart.

  • 2024 return
  • tokyo
  • reunion
  • graduation
  • probation

Movie threads

More Movies Like Weathering with You, by Mood & Story

Curated lists built around what makes Weathering with You tick: the same mood, the same kind of story or the same emotional payoff. Each list explains why these movies belong together.

Bittersweet urban fantasies like Weathering with You

Where wonder and love come with a heavy, world-altering cost. Explore movies like Weathering with You where magical abilities intertwine with young love in a modern city, but happiness is tempered by a heavy price. If you enjoyed the blend of romance, fantasy, and sacrifice in this anime, this thread features similar bittersweet stories that balance wonder with emotional cost.

  • melancholic
  • romantic
  • hopeful
  • yearning
  • atmospheric
  • dreamlike
  • Tone: bittersweet, melancholic, hopeful
  • Pacing: steady, character-driven
Why these movies?

The story pattern: These stories typically follow a protagonist who discovers or encounters a magical element or person that brings light into their life. As they embrace this wonder, they uncover a hidden rule or consequence that demands a significant personal or global sacrifice, forcing a choice between individual happiness and a greater good, resulting in a bittersweet resolution.

Why they belong together: They are grouped by their core formula of mixing everyday urban settings with supernatural elements to explore themes of love, sacrifice, and consequence. They share a specific emotional palette that balances hope with melancholy, creating a uniquely resonant and thoughtful experience.

Atmospheric coming-of-age stories like Weathering with You

Young characters find love and purpose as their environment undergoes a dramatic shift. Find movies similar to Weathering with You that feature young characters coming of age in a world undergoing dramatic change. If you liked the rain-drenched Tokyo setting and the theme of youth confronting larger-than-life problems, this thread collects films with strong atmospheres and moving relationship stories.

  • hopeful
  • yearning
  • atmospheric
  • melancholic
  • romantic
  • dreamlike
  • Tone: hopeful, yearning, bittersweet
  • Pacing: steady, atmospheric
Why these movies?

The story pattern: The narrative centers on adolescents or young adults who run away from or feel alienated by their circumstances. They find solace and purpose in a new relationship while grappling with a large-scale environmental or societal issue. Their personal journey of growth is intrinsically linked to understanding and responding to the world's transformation.

Why they belong together: These films share a focus on the emotional perspective of youth facing global-scale problems, using atmosphere and setting to enhance the emotional weight. They combine the intimate scale of a coming-of-age romance with the epic scale of a world in flux.

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Movies Like Weathering with You

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Every angle

Weathering with You (2019) Explained: Plot, Timeline & Characters

Everything about Weathering with You in one place: what happens in the plot summary, the timeline in chronological order, the characters and meaning and a spoiler-free summary. What's After the Movie adds the cast, box office and post-credit scenes.

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