Jujutsu Kaisen wrapped up its official sequel story earlier this year after a brief six month serialization, and it turns out that the creator behind it all originally didn’t plan to bring back any of the characters from the original series. Jujutsu Kaisen Modulo made a surprise launch with Shueisha’s Weekly Shonen Jump magazine late last year with the reveal that it was actually a sequel to the previous series, and it’s set 80 years after the events of that story. This meant that very few characters from the original actually appeared.
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With this massive time jump, not many characters from the original series had a chance to appear in the sequel. But it turns out that series creator Gege Akutami originally didn’t plan to bring any characters back in Jujutsu Kaisen Modulo at all. Explaining with a statement to fans with the final volume of the series hitting shelves in Japan (as shared by @soukatsu_ on X), there was an initial concern that fans would react negatively to any potential return in the sequel. But thanks to working with artist Yuji Iwasaki, Akutami decided to then included them at the end.
Jujutsu Kaisen Creator Didn’t Want to Bring Back Characters in Sequel
Breaking down the decision to bring back characters for Jujutsu Kaisen Modulo, Akutami explained why the new series involved a new illustrator at all, “One of the major reasons why the illustrations and the writing for the work was done separately is the fact that the series is set in a future timeline of its predecessor series, Jujutsu Kaisen.” Akutami had worried that fans would theorize over sequel character connections because they’d look similar to others, “So, for example, if I were to draw Usami, he’d end up looking too much like Nanami, which would lead to readers making unnecessary speculations and creating distracting noise that would disrupt the reading experience.”
Noting that separating the work of the writer and illustrator helped to further curb this issue, Akutami then revealed that he wanted to limit any potential returns, “I initially planned to avoid any appearances of previously existing characters or keep it to a bare minimum, due to the concern that long-time readers of the Jujutsu Kaisen series might react negatively.” But thanks to the new art from Iwasaki and fan reaction to it all, “…we decided to reveal them at the end of the story.”
What’s Next for Jujutsu Kaisen?
With the end of Jujutsu Kaisen Modulo, Akutami also confirmed that there will be no more of the series to come. The sequel wraps up the timeline for the franchise decades after the end of the original series, and makes sure to wrap up the future of Cursed Spirits overall. While there were still many questions left unanswered by the sequel, it seems that (for now) Akutami is no longer planning to continue the story further. Thankfully, there are still new releases on the way.
Jujutsu Kaisen: The Culling Game Part 2 has been announced as Season 4 of the anime, but a release date or window has yet to be revealed as of the time of this writing. It’s going to be picking up from the end of the third season with the next phase of the Culling Game as we’re going to see key fights from characters like Kinji Hakari, Panda and more. For now, catch up with the first three seasons now streaming with Crunchyroll.
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HT – @soukatsu_ on X
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