As the series’ original manga marches towards the conclusion of its final arc and the anime’s seventh season enters development, Shueisha is continuing the My Hero Academia-hype train with their green-lighting of the franchise’s fourth original animated movie.
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Announced in the #36-37 2023 double issue of Shueisha’s Weekly Shonen Jump, the film, currently titled My Hero Academia The Movie, will reportedly feature an original story supervised by series creator Kohei Horikoshi.
In a statement released alongside the announcement, the mangaka exclaimed (translated via @RukasuMHA), “I was really surprised when they told me there would be a new movie. I couldn’t help but think back to my childhood when a new Dragon Ball movie was being released every year.”
“Those made me so excited that I remember sitting in the movie theater with my heart racing like crazy,” he reminisced. “So I hope the new generation of kids around the world can enjoy the movie just as much as me back then!”
Horikoshi also teased the film’s plot, informing fans that the film will “take place after the War from Season 6, meaning that the collapsed society will be the stage this time.”
“After having been through so much and learning so many things, who will Deku and his friends fight against this time?” he rhetorically inquired. “What will they protect?! Look forward to it!”
In addition to this announcement in Weekly Shonen Jump, the anime’s current rights holder, Toho Animation, released a brief teaser trailer for the upcoming project.
Unfortunately, the trailer itself is rather barebones, and rather than providing any further insight into the film’s plot instead serves only to recap the franchise’s previous cinematic outings, Two Heroes, Heroes Rising, and World Heroes’ Mission.
However, though official details are scarce, a few bits of information can be gleamed from Horikoshi’s comments regarding its place in the timeline.
With the film taking place after Season 6, series protagonist Izuku “Deku” Midoriya will likely appear with his newly acquired control over his One for All powers – and possibly a few emotional threads to tie-up.
Further, though the Paranormal Liberation Front’s rebellion was eventually shut down by the world’s Pro Heroes, the villains were successful in freeing All for One from captivity.
This means that at the time of the film’s events, the series’ arch-villain is running wild, leaving a distinct possibility that he may run up against Deku once again.
And this is to say nothing of the numerous lives that were upended by the wanton destruction resulting from the war.
With much of Musufatu, Japan left ruined in the wake of the heroes’ victory, it would come as no surprise if the film’s antagonist was someone who blamed Deku for his current predicament.
Of course, all of this is just speculation. Actual, concrete details will be made available as production moves along.
As of writing, My Hero Academia: The Movie does not have an official release date.