Just as we
were enjoying the absolute "Cinema" that is the third season of Jujutsu
Kaisen, a bucket of ice water fell on us. The rumors that began to
circulate this Wednesday suggest that Shota Goshozono, the director
who practically saved the franchise and gave us a legendary Shibuya Arc, has
decided to get off the MAPPA ship. According to the leaks,
"Gosso" (as he is known in the otaku industry) ended his involvement
with Part 1 of the Culling Game and chose not to renew his
contract, leaving the future of the series in the hands of who knows who.
Did the
animation fall or was it a peaceful exit?
Before you
start burning down the MAPPA offices on Twitter, take a deep breath. Unlike the
studio's usual dramas — where animators ask for help for exploitation — it
seems that Goshozono's departure was entirely on his own terms. The report
suggests that he fully complied with directing and storyboarding the
first half of the season, delivering that cinematic and tense vision that we
love so much, and simply decided that his cycle was over. There was no lawsuit,
no funa, no scandal; just a professional closing the door.
However,
the concern is real. We're right in the middle of the arc of Journey to
Extinction, a saga that gets increasingly brutal with three-way fights and
complex domains. Goshozono was the one who brought that "handheld
camera" aesthetic and crazy angles that gave the series its identity after
the departure of Sunghoo Park. If it is confirmed that he is leaving before
Part 2, the fear is that the change of director will be too noticeable and we
will lose that visual cohesion that made each episode feel like a Hollywood
movie. For now, MAPPA hasn't said anything, but the fandom is already lighting
candles.
On the
legacy of "God-sozono"
Shota
Goshozono is not just any director; he's the guy who took the hot potato that
was Season 2 and turned it into a Crunchyroll Anime Awards-winning masterpiece
in 2024. Its experimental style, mixing frenetic action with moments of awkward
silence and melancholy (like everything that happened with Gojo and Geto),
raised the standard of modern anime. If this is his final goodbye, he leaves
behind gigantic shoes that hardly anyone will be able to fill.
