Jujutsu Kaisen 0 Is Coming Back To Theaters, But There’s Something You May Not Know

At the heart of Jujutsu Kaisen 0 is a tidbit not many fans know about―and it comes with seismic consequences for the series. With the impending release of the highly anticipated Hidden Inventory film recapping Jujutsu Kaisen‘s eponymous arc, the official Jujutsu Kaisen anime account on X (formerly Twitter) announced that Jujutsu Kaisen 0 will also return to theaters.

Jujutsu Kaisen 0 is great, there’s no question about that, and it’s certain that fans worldwide are excited for the opportunity to catch it in theaters. Covering the tumultuous journey of Yuta Okkotsu as he’s taken in by Jujutsu High and fends off Geto’s attempted massacre, JJK 0 is a brilliant foundation for the series as a whole. But not a lot of fans know that Jujutsu Kaisen 0 isn’t a prequel―it’s actually just “Proto-JJK”: the film is an adaptation of a four-part limited series that predated Jujutsu Kaisen‘s serialization, only later given the title Jujutsu Kaisen 0.

Yuta Was Jujutsu Kaisen’s Original Protagonist

In effect, what this means is that Jujutsu Kaisen‘s protagonist originally wasn’t Yuji at all. Instead, that post was held by Jujutsu Kaisen 0‘s lanky, lovelorn lead. Aside from Jujutsu Kaisen 0, anime-only fans have only just gotten a taste of Yuta at the end of Season 2 where he’s tasked with Yuji’s execution.

It’s a stellar cliffhanger that begs for the next season, during which Yuta will start to play a significant role. Avoiding spoilers: suffice it to say that Yuta becomes pivotal in some of the biggest fights in the latter half of the hit shonen, enough to be accused multiple times by the JJK fandom of stealing the spotlight from Yuji himself.

It’s an irony likely lost on anime-only fans that Yuji was once accused of doing the same to Yuta. After Jujutsu Kaisen debuted in Shonen Jump with its flashy new protagonist, comparisons were drawn between the two regularly by fans who enjoyed Gege Akutami’s previous limited series―comparisons that weren’t all that friendly to Yuji.

Yuji’s lighthearted, milquetoast characterization did make him easier for readers to project themselves onto, and they also made him the perfect vessel for a story whose protagonist is a vessel―both literally, in the sense of hosting Sukuna, and metaphorically, in the sense of being a prism through which other characters’ stories are reflected. In fact, those are precisely the reasons Gege himself found Yuji hard to write.

Granted, Yuji is relatively bland compared to Yuta, whose darker background, morose disposition, and fixed motivations make him a stronger narrative force altogether. But it’s easy to argue that Yuji’s presence as the protagonist makes for a better story. Yuta could easily overpower a story, and there’s a good reason that a protagonist with a more standard personality came to take his place. Nonetheless, that doesn’t stop certain fans from daydreaming about how maintaining a focus on Yuta might have made for a drastically different story―and even in the mainline story we have, it doesn’t stop the two protagonists from feeling equally worthy of the spot.

[RELATED: Why You Must Watch Jujutsu Kaisen 0]

Perfect Timing: The Serendipity of Jujutsu Kaisen 0’s Return

In our coverage of Jujutsu Kaisen 0‘s theater return, we remarked that the timing is excellent because the film integrates naturally with the “Hidden Inventory” arc and its respective film. That’s true, of course: both focus on Gojo and Geto’s backstory, and together, they mark the most significant backstory dump in Jujutsu Kaisen writ large.

But Jujutsu Kaisen 0’s timing is perfect for yet another reason. With the Itadori Extermination arc on the horizon in the mainline anime, Yuji and Yuta will start settling a feud that has existed since the franchise’s very beginning. It’s always been written in the margins and never outright stated, but the competition between the two for the title of Jujutsu Kaisen‘s “true protagonist” will finally start hitting the screen.

It starts with the Itadori Extermination arc, sure, but then it carries forward into traded or shared screentime during the Perfect Preparation, Culling Game, and Shinjuku Showdown arcs. This interplay between protagonist and former protagonist is crucial as the series presses forward for reasons it would spoil too much to share, but it’s their implicit vie for the series’ spotlight that demands each one to outpace the other’s growth in an indirect narrative sense.

Of course, with Jujutsu Kaisen‘s manga finale shrinking more and more in the rear-view mirror, the anticipation surrounding the series has become scattered. It’s still high, but it’s also all over the place. It’s approaching two years since Jujutsu Kaisen‘s third season was first announced, which means fans have had a lot of time pass since the first embers of the rivalry were on-screen. Now is the perfect time to remind fans of Yuta’s prescience and dominance as a driver of Jujutsu Kaisen‘s story before the real battle between the two begins.