My Hero Academia Manga Fans Spot Villainous Movie Easter Egg

My Hero Academia will soon be launching its second huge movie effort into Japanese theaters later this year, and while that’s an exciting prospect all its own, Heroes Rising is shaping up in unexpected ways and making the idea all the more enticing. One of the many good nuggets that fans have had to chew on so far is the idea that series creator Kohei Horikoshi once wanted to use the concept of this film for his finale in the original manga.

Now that the first teaser for the film has revealed the mysterious new villain challenging Midoriya and Bakugo in the new movie, fans have noticed that the character actually had a small cameo in one of the chapters of the series.

As noted by @CDCubed on Twitter, who actually handles the English translation of the series for Viz Media, the new villain Nine (who’s also being touted as the “ultimate villain” in the teaser) actually appeared in a small capacity in Chapter 222 of the series. Without giving too much away, this chapter sees Shigaraki reaffirming why he’s a villain. He touts that he’s going to “destroy everything” and the series reveals a mosaic of random characters.

There are glimpses of Midoriya and the other kids, Hero Killer Stain in Tartarus, and other mysterious images teasing the future. But one of them saw a mysterious villain with their back turned to the audience. In the first teaser, Nine is introduced in this same way and it’s clear that Horikoshi planted the idea of the villain before his official reveal.

This already gives the new villain more clout than the last as the first villain (or its new characters like Melissa Shield) has yet to be officially recognized in the manga in any capacity. So, this certainly raises a few questions as to how much this new film can shake up the status quo of the actual series.

My Hero Academia: Heroes Rising is officially described as such, “A must-see story full of passion!! In this movie, Deku, Bakugo, Ochaco, Todoroki, and all the other members of Class A will make an appearance! Even though All Might was admired by [many] all around the world, it was with a sad heart that he had to give up his hero role as the Symbol of Peace. Because of this, a dark force who was moving behind the scenes, a villain named Nine who can be considered the greatest villain thus far.”

Did you spot the new villain hiding out in the manga? What do you think of the new villain for My Hero Academia: Heroes Rising? Let us know your thoughts in the comments!