Jujutsu Kaisen Behind the Scenes: Akutami, Jump and MAPPA

Jujutsu Kaisen went from a four-chapter magazine story to a manga with more than 100 million copies in circulation, three anime seasons and a hit movie, all in well under a decade. Here's how it happened: the creator, the magazine, the studio and the milestones along the way. No story spoilers here, just the real-world history.

Gege Akutami and the prequel

Jujutsu Kaisen is written and illustrated by Gege Akutami. Before the main series existed, Akutami ran a four-chapter story called Tokyo Metropolitan Curse Technical School in Jump GIGA in 2017. According to Anime News Network's review of the complete manga, it was well received, and Akutami's editors asked for the concept to be expanded into an ongoing series.

That early story didn't disappear. It was collected as a single volume, retitled Jujutsu Kaisen 0, and published in Japan in December 2018. VIZ Media released it in English in January 2021. It's the reason the series has a "Volume 0," and it became the basis for the first movie.

Weekly Shonen Jump, 2018 to 2024

The main series launched in Shueisha's Weekly Shonen Jump in March 2018. English-language readers were on board from the very start: VIZ Media published the first three chapters simultaneously with Japan as part of its Jump Start initiative, and when VIZ switched to its Shonen Jump model in December 2018, it began publishing new chapters digitally. Shueisha also put the series on its MANGA Plus service.

The ending was something Akutami talked about publicly well before it arrived. At the Jump Festa '24 event in December 2023, Akutami left a handwritten comment saying this would "probably definitely" be the last Jump Festa with the series still in serialization. Anime News Network read it as a hint that the manga would end in 2024.

It did. On August 19, 2024, the manga's official account on X announced that Jujutsu Kaisen had five chapters left, and Shueisha confirmed the news in its "Jump Press" livestream the same day. The final chapter, number 271, ran in the 44th issue of Weekly Shonen Jump on September 30, 2024.

That final issue came with a milestone: Shueisha revealed that the manga had 100 million copies in circulation. Anime News Network notes that this counts copies in circulation, not sold, includes digital copies, and wasn't specified as worldwide or Japan-only. For comparison, the figure had been 80 million as of June 2023. Shueisha released the 29th and 30th volumes on the same day, December 25, 2024, with Volume 30 as the final volume. VIZ is publishing the English edition in print and digitally.

After the finale: Modulo and more

The franchise kept moving after the main story ended. In September 2025, Weekly Shonen Jump launched Jujutsu Kaisen Modulo, a spinoff written by Akutami and drawn by Yuji Iwasaki, the illustrator of Cipher Academy. The first chapter ran 54 pages, with a color opening page, and the series made the cover of that issue. Akutami described it as a fixed short-term series of "around" three volumes running about half a year. The same issue announced that horror novelist Yumeaki Hirayama would write a spinoff novel for the franchise.

MAPPA and the anime

The TV anime is produced by studio MAPPA. Season 1 premiered in October 2020 in the Super Animeism programming block on MBS, TBS and their affiliates, and ran for 24 episodes, about two broadcast quarters. Crunchyroll streamed it outside Asia as it aired in Japan. The core staff:

• Director: Sunghoo Park (The God of High School)
• Series scripts: Hiroshi Seko, who wrote and supervised them
• Character design: Tadashi Hiramatsu
• Music: Hiroaki Tsutsumi, Yoshimasa Terui and Arisa Okehazama
• Opening theme: "Kaikai Kitan" by Eve
• Ending theme: "Lost in Paradise feat. AKLO" by ALI

The movie

Next came Jujutsu Kaisen 0, animated by MAPPA and distributed by TOHO. It opened in Japan on December 24, 2021, topped the box office chart in its opening weekend and earned about 2.69 billion yen in its first three days. Megumi Ogata voiced lead Yuta Okkotsu, with Kana Hanazawa as Rika Orimoto. Crunchyroll opened the film in the US and Canada on March 18, 2022, in both subtitled and English-dubbed versions, in more than 1,500 theaters, including IMAX screens.

Seasons 2 and 3

Season 2 premiered in July 2023 on MBS, TBS and 28 affiliated channels, and ran for two continuous cours, a half-year with no break. It adapted two arcs: "Hidden Inventory / Premature Death" in July and August, then "Shibuya Incident" in 18 episodes starting at the end of August.

Season 3, The Culling Game Part 1, premiered in January 2026 with a one-hour, two-episode special on the "Super Animeism TURBO" block. It ran 12 episodes and ended in March with an extended 27-minute finale, the series' 59th episode overall. The staff:

• Director: Shōta Goshozono, whose credits include the Hidden Inventory / Premature Death compilation film
• Scripts: Hiroshi Seko
• Character design: Yosuke Yajima and Hiromi Niwa, who moved up from animation directors
• Music: Yoshimasa Terui
• Opening theme: "AIZO" by King Gnu
• Ending theme: "Yoake no Uta" (Song of Dawn) by jo0ji

The recap films

In 2025, the anime went back to theaters in compilation form. Hidden Inventory / Premature Death – The Movie opened in Japan on May 30, 2025, and ranked No. 4 in its opening weekend; GKIDS screened it in US theaters that July. Jujutsu Kaisen: Execution, which pairs a special edit of the Shibuya Incident arc with the first two episodes of Season 3, opened in Japan on November 7, 2025, on both IMAX and regular screens. It ranked No. 1 in its opening weekend, earning about 640 million yen in its first three days, and was scheduled for North American theaters on December 5.

Season 4

In June 2026, MAPPA's 15th Anniversary Lineup Reveal livestream debuted a teaser for Jujutsu Kaisen Season 4: The Culling Game Part 2. The video said the season was in production but gave no release window. The event also named a new director: Takeru Sato, who had been assistant director on Season 3.

Milestones at a glance

1. 2017: The four-chapter prequel runs in Jump GIGA.
2. March 2018: Jujutsu Kaisen launches in Weekly Shonen Jump.
3. December 2018: The prequel is published in Japan as Jujutsu Kaisen 0.
4. October 2020: The MAPPA anime premieres.
5. December 2021: The Jujutsu Kaisen 0 movie opens in Japan.
6. July 2023: Season 2 premieres.
7. September 30, 2024: The final chapter, 271, is published.
8. December 2024: The final volume, Volume 30, ships in Japan.
9. September 2025: Jujutsu Kaisen Modulo launches.
10. January 2026: Season 3 premieres.
11. June 2026: Season 4 teaser and new director revealed.