Jujutsu Kaisen 0 spoilers follow.
It feels like Jujutsu Kaisen 0 came out of nowhere, much like one of the show's signature curses, but before this anime became our new obsession, the story started out in Gege Akutami's manga, which was serialised back in 2017.
Originally titled Tokyo Metropolitan Curse Technical School, these first pages actually came before the main Jujutsu Kaisen story now seen in the regular anime series. And it wasn't until Akutami found success with these comics that he went back and rebranded this first arc as Jujutsu Kaisen 0, which has since been adapted into a prequel movie.
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Confused yet? While that sounds like a lot to wrap your head around, the film itself is actually quite straightforward.
As a mostly stand-alone prequel, Jujutsu Kaisen 0 assumes that viewers don't know anything about the lore behind this franchise, which almost makes this a new pilot of sorts... Except, this time around, we're (re)introduced to Jujutsu's world on the big screen.
Taking place roughly a year before the anime, Jujutsu Kaisen 0 tells the story of Yuta Okkotsu, a young, troubled student who is plagued by the curse of his late girlfriend. Sensing great potential in Yuta, Satoru Gojo enlists him in Tokyo Metropolitan Technical college to master the Jujutsu arts and help fight curses.
Okkotsu doesn't appear in the anime, or not yet, anyway, but he's still name-dropped regularly throughout season one. Gojo mentions him early on as one of the upperclassmen who could even surpass him one day, much to Itadori's surprise. Aoi Todo also brings Yuta up at one point while describing his ideal opponents in the Goodwill tournament. But beyond that, the hero of Jujutsu Kaisen 0 doesn't appear physically in this initial run of episodes.
The reason why is because Yuta's off working overseas on a mission, which is not uncommon for students of his strength. And because of this, Itadori and his newest friends haven't had the chance to meet Okkotsu yet. However, second-year students like Maki Zenin, Toge Inumaki and Panda are all familiar with him, and the genesis of that relationship plays out here in the prequel Jujutsu Kaisen 0.
Beyond these recurring characters, the film also connects to the main show in a much more integral way — but not until the very end.
After Yuta defeats Suguru Geto, a post-credits scene takes us to Africa where Okkotsu is sitting with his former foe, Miguel. Gojo walks in with a message, which seems to hint that it's time for Yuta to come back to school. And this is key because the post-credits scene doesn't occur in the past like the rest of this prequel. What's happening here directly ties into the show's future, setting up Okkotsu's role in season two and possibly three.
Oh, you thought this was the last we were going to see of Yuta?
Don't get too excited though. Okkotsu's debut in Jujutsu Kaisen's main show won't be all jolly and smiley. In the manga, Yuta doesn't show up until after the Shibuya Incident arc, which fans presume will form the bulk of season two. And that's bad news for Itadori, because Yuta is actually there to execute our hero.
Without spoiling too much, Itadori is responsible for a lot of deaths in that storyline, which includes some of his closest friends. So when the two protagonists of this franchise finally meet, there's going to be a lot of tension, to say the least.
In the film's post credits scene, Gojo might even be explaining Yuta's new mission, but what we don't know yet is whether this will actually take place in season two. Timing-wise, it's also possible that the prequel's final moments might not come into play until season three.
Either way, Yuta voice actor Kayleigh McKee told Digital Spy that she's "very excited" by the idea of exploring all this in future dubs – even if Itadori probably isn't.
Jujutsu Kaisen 0 is available to watch in UK cinemas from 18 March, 2022.
After teaching in England and South Korea, David turned to writing in Germany, where he covered everything from superhero movies to the Berlin Film Festival.
In 2019, David moved to London to join Digital Spy, where he could indulge his love of comics, horror and LGBTQ+ storytelling as Deputy TV Editor, and later, as Acting TV Editor.
David has spoken on numerous LGBTQ+ panels to discuss queer representation and in 2020, he created the Rainbow Crew interview series, which celebrates LGBTQ+ talent on both sides of the camera via video content and longform reads.
Beyond that, David has interviewed all your faves, including Henry Cavill, Pedro Pascal, Olivia Colman, Patrick Stewart, Ncuti Gatwa, Jamie Dornan, Regina King, and more — not to mention countless Drag Race legends.
As a freelance entertainment journalist, David has bylines across a range of publications including Empire Online, Radio Times, INTO, Highsnobiety, Den of Geek, The Digital Fix and Sight & Sound.
