Slam Dunk Creator Addresses Sequel Rumors
Slam Dunk hit a slam dunk at theaters, and the franchise's creator discussed the possibility of a sequel in the face of success.
The First Slam Dunk was nothing to sneeze at when it came to the anime film's box office receipts. Hitting theaters in Japan last year, and theaters in North America this summer, the Toei Animation movie has pulled in over $250 million dollars, making it quite the success. Despite the major box office, a second film has yet to be confirmed, though the creator of Slam Dunk, Takehiko Inoue, recently took the opportunity to address sequel rumors and the work that went into bringing his sports anime franchise back to the silver screen.
Despite the fact that The First Slam Dunk arrived in Japanese theaters in 2022, it has remained a fixture on the big screen in Japan since. With its theatrical run aiming to end at the end of this month in Japan, Inoue was a part of a recent event where he discussed many aspects of the film, including the making of it, ""Before the film's release, I just wanted to finish it. I just wanted to do everything I could to make the film even a little better. The staff was also full of people doing their best."
The Second Slam Dunk?
Inoue addressed the recent sequel rumors, by bypassing the question entirely and not confirming one way or the other, "If I said there will be [a sequel] or said there won't be one, wouldn't that statement tie me down? Like if I say there will be one, and there isn't, that'd be bad. And if I said there won't be one, then even if I feel like drawing one, I won't be able to. So I'm not going to say anything right now."
The Slam Dunk creator also took the chance to discuss how the movie would only be "complete" when anime fans had the opportunity to see it, "Even though the movie was completed, a film has no value unless the audience sees it. A film is truly complete when the audience sees it—when it has been conveyed to each and every one of them. The same is true for manga. So I hope that happened."
Did you get a chance to see The First Slam Dunk in theaters? Do you want there to be a re-match, aka sequel? Feel free to let us know in the comments or hit me up directly @EVComedy to talk all things comics, anime, and the world of sports anime.