Jujutsu Kasien animators are taking the heat from an episode director who vented his frustration on social media, calling out everyone responsible for sharing excerpts of an unreleased episode to leak accounts.
The Jujutsu Kaisen production lead sparked a firestorm on social media with a scathing call-out to people allegedly sharing leaks of the anime's episodes. Episode director Takao Abo Isuto publicly addressed the issue on X (formerly Twitter), referring to such acts as "shameless" and "criminal." The director stated that he had already reprimanded suspected individuals about the problem through direct message, and the X post was likely an effort to address anyone else involved. If proven true, it will be the latest example of the industry's perennial problem of content leaks, made worse if people directly working on the Jujutsu Kaisen anime series are indeed involved.
The mounting drama prompted an animator for Jujutsu Kaisen Episode 39 to also post on the platform and reveal more details on the controversy: "Over the past couple of hours people have 'accused' me of leaking #JujutsuKaisen #39," Amphibole posted on X. "After an investigation from MAPPAs PA Hakanoshita, whom almost all webgen animators who worked on jjk would know said that I was innocent along with the leaker who said he never talked to me ever." The post identified at least one leaker, which remained suspect and unnamed in the screenshot conversation included with the X post. This new tension behind the scenes of Jujutsu Kaisen's production piles on top of intense pressure to meet quality standards and tight deadlines.
Drama Behind the Scenes of Jujutsu Kaisen
The leaked footage in question involved Toji in a fight scene, which made its rounds online before Episode 39, "Fluctuations, Part 2," aired on Nov. 2. The footage was raw and unfinished, fueling suspicion that someone from the production team was responsible for the leak. Netizens mounted an ongoing hunt for the source of the leak, leading to animators like Amphibole being accused. So far, the source remains unnamed and unidentified, and there's no indication that new leaks won't drop in the future. Jujutsu Kaisen is currently in its second season and so far has maintained a faithful adaptation of the manga series.
Weekly Shōnen Jump magazine launched Jujutsu Kaisen in March 2018. Gege Akutami writes and illustrates the ongoing manga series, which has since been compiled and published in 24 volumes as of October 2023. Season 1 of the anime began airing on Oct. 3, 2020, adapting 64 chapters of the manga within 24 episodes of the anime series. Season 2 started airing on July 6, 2023.
Jujutsu Kaisen is now streaming on Crunchyroll and Hulu.
Source: X (formerly Twitter)
