The KAGURABACHI anime officially launched its global promotional tour at Anime Expo 2026 in Los Angeles, where fans received the world’s first screening of the opening 20 minutes of Episode 1 alongside a panel featuring lead voice actor Taihi Kimura, manga editor Takuro Imamura, and anime producer Koichi Yasuda. The event also offered new behind-the-scenes insights into the adaptation as production continues toward its April 2027 premiere.
Based on Takeru Hokazono’s Weekly Shonen Jump manga, which has surpassed 4 million copies in circulation including digital editions, KAGURABACHI is being animated by Cypic (formerly CygamesPictures).
The series is directed by Tetsuya Takeuchi, with Keigo Sasaki serving as character designer. Taihi Kimura voices protagonist Chihiro Rokuhira, joined by Tomokazu Seki as Kunishige Rokuhira and Katsuyuki Konishi as Togo Shiba.
Following the premiere screening, Kimura reflected on voicing Chihiro and the challenges of portraying the character.
“Chihiro is difficult; if I slowly feel it in my heart, too much emotion comes out. Balancing it so that not too much comes out, while remembering that he is still an 18-year-old, is tricky. But I go into recording feeling as though I’ve left something precious to my heart behind.”
Kimura also revealed that his favorite scene from the premiere episode is “Enten,” drawing cheers from attendees during the Q&A session. During the panel, manga editor Takuro Imamura discussed original creator Takeru Hokazono’s reaction to the anime adaptation.
“Hokazono-sensei was also very happy. Ever since the anime adaptation was announced, we’ve received huge expectations from everyone, and sensei is also highly motivated to make the manga Kagurabachi even more interesting.”
When asked about the author’s requests for the adaptation, Imamura added:
“His strong feeling was simply that he wanted it to be a very cool anime.”
Producer Koichi Yasuda also spoke about the project’s direction, explaining that the adaptation was driven by the manga’s sword action while emphasizing the staff’s goal of faithfully translating the original work.
“Our core production concept is to fully bring out the absolute best of the original work.”
Regarding the biggest production challenge, Yasuda said:
“It’s the action. The animation work is extremely difficult, so Cypic is giving it more than their all to produce this.”
The panel concluded with messages to fans, with Kimura saying:
“I was so, so happy to see all of your faces and absorb your passion into my body. As a fan myself, I want to continue enjoying KAGURABACHI more and more together with all of you from here on out, so please continue to support us!”
Anime Expo was only the beginning of the KAGURABACHI Anime World Tour Part 1. Additional advance screenings of the first 20 minutes of Episode 1 are scheduled for Japan Expo in Paris on July 9, AnimagiC in Mannheim on August 1, Otakon in Washington, D.C. on August 2, and Anime NYC on August 22, with select events also featuring staff panels.
The KAGURABACHI anime is scheduled to premiere in April 2027 and will stream on Crunchyroll, MUSE, SMG HOLDINGS, and other platforms.
Source: Press Release
©Takeru Hokazono/SHUEISHA,Project Kagurabachi
Participate In Discussions