While horror-focused anime might be difficult to find these days, at least in comparison to anime in the action and comedy realms, some franchises are more than willing to dip their toes into the world of horror. Jujutsu Kaisen, for example, has been more than willing to introduce some of the creepiest creatures and villains introduced in any shonen franchise. With the third season recently coming to a close, Studio MAPPA wasted little time in confirming that a fourth season was on the way. Luckily, JJK creator Gege Akutami isn’t taking a break and has created a crossover with the works of horror master Junji Ito.
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With Jujutsu Kaisen’s sequel, Jujutsu Kaisen Modulo, recently releasing its final chapter, Gege Akutami seemingly has quite a lot of time on their hands. The artist has spent years following the likes of Yuji Itadori and the students of Jujutsu Tech, and with no future series announced as of the writing of this article, the mangaka is depicting one of Junji Ito’s creepiest characters. While Tomie never could unleash a Domain Expansion, the succubus has long been one of Ito’s creepiest characters. For a recent issue of the Japanese publication Da Vinci Magazine, Akutami shared the new art of the horror character with countless anime and live-action appearances to her name.
Jujutsu Kaisen’s Junji Ito History
This recent art isn’t the first time that these two supernatural universes have collided. In Jujutsu Kaisen’s second season, during the storyline known as the Shibuya Incident Arc, a clear homage to Junji Ito’s Uzumaki was employed by the shonen franchise. When Suguru Geto decided that Mahito’s usefulness had come to an end, Kenjaku took the villain’s power for himself and in doing so, creating a grotesque scene that looked as though it had been lifted straight from Uzumaki. While this can hardly be considered an official crossover, it’s clear that Akutami was a fan of the master of horror’s work. Considering how big Uzumaki has become in recent years, it would make sense that Akutami would choose this project to honor.
While Jujutsu Kaisen’s anime future is secured, Junji Ito’s works are upping their game across several media. Previously, it had been announced that a new anime anthology series, adapting more of Ito’s creepy tales, was coming to the small screen via Crimson. While this series has yet to receive a release date, 2026 will see another adaptation arrive on Netflix. Bloody Smart is set to land this year on the streaming service, taking various characters and creatures and forging a new live-action adaptation. This isn’t even touching on the upcoming trilogy of films from Fangoria Studios that will create Hollywood iterations of Ito’s campfire stories. Bloodsucking Darkness and Secret of the Haunted House will be made into Western films, though much like Crimson, a release date for these adaptations has yet to be revealed.
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