This Anime Will Be Bigger Than Solo Leveling

Solo Leveling is arguably the most popular anime released this year. It dominated social media and anime discussions while it aired a few months ago, and it remains as one of the most commented-on series this year, even without new episodes. While fans eagerly wait for the announcement of Solo Leveling Season 3, they should also keep an eye on an upcoming anime that seems destined to become a massive hit: Kagurabachi.

Even those who don’t often read manga might have already heard of Kagurabachi. It is one of Shonen Jump’s current flagship titles, written by Takeru Hokazono, and it has the potential to become one of the most popular anime ever, a massive hit that could perhaps even surpass series like Solo Leveling.

Kagurabachi Is Shonen Jump’s Next Big Hit

Kagurabachi has been in serialization since 2023, and it quickly gathered a lot of attention with its dark and gritty tone. It was quickly dubbed “the new Jujutsu Kaisen” due to some similar themes, but in many ways, Kagurabachi resembles Solo Leveling more. Sure, it is an original story that differs from both series but holds a few likenesses that can attract similar audiences. Additionally, Kagurabachi is already much more successful than most manga that haven’t yet been adapted into anime, with over 2 million copies in circulation as of May 2025. The series is likely to explode in popularity when the anime adaptation is released.

But what makes Kagurabachi so appealing? This is not an easy question, but the main character definitely helps. Chihiro Rokuhira is not the typical cheerful shonen protagonist of series like My Hero Academia. Instead, he is on a mission to avenge his father. The first chapter starts with a bloodshed scene, then introduces Chihiro, who is on a mission to avenge the death of his father with his powerful katana. His father was the blacksmith who forged the six Enchanted Blades, which were used in an important war. One day, a group of criminals murders him and steals the blades. However, they didn’t know that there was a seventh blade, Enten, which is the one Chihiro holds while targeting those who killed his father.

So, instead of a typical story about a character overcoming challenges to become the best, we are presented with a story about vengeance with an edgy and determined protagonist acting alone, a very promising and appealing premise.

Cygames Pictures Is The Perfect Studio for It

The manga seems to have all it takes to become one of the biggest anime hits of the past few years. However, a good anime isn’t just about having a good story. It also requires good animation and direction, among other elements (like soundtrack and so on). While the anime hasn’t been officially announced by Shonen Jump, Toyo Keizai, one of Japan’s leading business publications, has reported that a Kagurabachi anime is in production. Fans were expecting the anime to be handled by studios like A-1 Pictures, MAPPA, CloverWorks, Ufotable, Bones, or even Toei—studios known for adapting Shonen Jump series. However, according to Toyo Keizai, Cygames Pictures will be responsible for the animation.

Shonen Jump readers might not be familiar with Cygames Pictures, as many of their works are adaptations of Cygames properties, but the studio generally delivers high-quality animation. For instance, it animated Shinichiro Watanabe’s Blade Runner Black Out 2022 short anime film, which is set after the original Blade Runner. It also animated Masami Obari’s Brave Bang Bravern! in 2024. One of its most recent works is Apocalypse Hotel, currently airing this season. While all the series mentioned are niche, they have been praised for the quality of animation and visuals. Kagurabachi is likely to have a higher budget than any of them, so Cygames Pictures will surely be able to deliver something even better.

When Will Kagurabachi Anime Be Released?

Toyo Keizai only confirmed that the anime is in the works but hasn’t reported a release window. It would be reasonable to expect a 2026 release, but that remains speculation for now. There may be news on Kagurabachi at Anime Expo 2025 in early July. It has been reported that Netflix has acquired the streaming rights to the anime. If true, Netflix may drop new information about the series during their panel on July 5.

For now, as the anime adaptation hasn’t been officially announced by Shonen Jump, Cygames, Netflix, or any other potentially involved party, there is no official release date or release window.

Netflix Can Take Kagurabachi Even Higher

If Netflix has indeed acquired the streaming rights for Kagurabachi, it could be a game-changer for them. Netflix has long tried to attract anime fans and become some sort of “home of the anime,” a title currently held by Crunchyroll. For years, investment in anime apparently hasn’t paid off for Netflix. Things seemed to start to change last year with Dandadan, but this series was also streamed on Crunchyroll. Netflix was probably betting that Sakamoto Days would be their game-changer, but despite a good performance on the service, Solo Leveling claimed the top spot as the anime of the season, while Sakamoto Days was heavily criticized by fans. Solo Leveling became a huge hit, even with Crunchyroll having fewer subscribers than Netflix.

With a good story adapted by a great studio, Kagurabachi can become one of the flagship titles in Netflix’s exclusive anime catalog. Netflix might finally have an exclusive anime hit that dominates fan discussion and social media while, and maybe even after, it airs. With the right investment and production, Kagurabachi has the potential to become one of those rare and unprecedented hits.