The god of horror manga is once again getting an anime series.
Officially announced during the Japan Expo in Paris, a new television anime based on Junji Ito’s works, titled “Junji Ito Crimson”, is now officially in production. The announcement was paired with an opening theme song reveal, performed by Yumi Matsutoya and titled “Karasuageha”.
Furthermore, Crunchyroll has confirmed that it will be streaming the series when it premieres in the future, although a release date, cast, and staff are yet to be revealed.
“Junji Ito Crimson” will adapt new and old works, but fans are reserved
Given that no further information is known about the project, the exact Junji Ito stories this project plans to adapt is up in the air. But since this isn’t Junji Ito’s first rodeo with anime, we can expect to see stories that haven't already animated in the 2018 “Junji Ito Collection” and “Junji Ito Maniac: Japanese Tales of the Macabre” from 2023. Both titles each adapted 20 stories from Ito’s Masterpiece collection and “Fragments of Horror”.
Ito primarily creates short horror manga stories, and has over 46 books in publication, the majority of which have collected his short stories. With such a vast repertoire of spine-chilling tales, fans are excited, yet hesitant, for this upcoming adaptation.
The hesitance comes from experience: fans have found it difficult to enjoy anime adapting Junji Ito’s works because the shows often fell under expectation. Particularly, the 2024 short series “Uzumaki”, the long-awaited anime adaptation of arguably Ito’s most well-known work next to “Tomie”, was critically panned by fans due to its subpar animation quality.
However, an official statement by Junji Ito, which was released on the official X (formerly Twitter) account for his various anime titles, assures fans that he is excited for this upcoming new adaptation. Part of the statement, through a machine-translation, reads:
“Currently, an anime called Junji Ito Crimson” based on my original work is being made. Just hearing this title makes me excited and my expectations rise. I have heard that they will select from my old and new short stories to be animated, especially those that can fully utilise the deep red color like blood.”
