UPDATE May 10, 2022: Crunchyroll’s Dragon Ball Super: SUPER HERO USA release date is confirmed for Summer 2022. For more details, please see the newer article in the link. The remainder of this article remains as published since the last update.
The Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero release date has been confirmed to be in 2022.
What’s more, Akira Toriyama himself is talking about the new Dragon Ball Super movie Super Hero.
“An all new movie since Dragon Ball Super: Broly is currently in the making!” the Dragon Ball creator wrote. “Just like the previous movie, I’m heavily leading the story and dialogue production for another production for another amazing film.”
Back in 2019, Shueisha editor Akio Iyoku and Dragon Ball Super: Broly producer Norihiro Hayashida had discussed their early plans for the planned film project as part of an interview included in the Dragon Ball Super: Broly Blu-Ray/DVD.
Iyoku said at the time that “there were a few things we couldn’t achieve” with the DBS: Broly movie, so they were hoping the next film would be much better.
“We are steadily working towards the next Dragon Ball movie. Since Broly was way too strong, I think maybe next time things will head in a different direction in the next one,” Iyoku said. “I’ve overcome various hurdles with parts of Broly, so I won’t get burned out. From here on out, I think Dragon Ball will continue on, so please look forward to it.”
Producer Hayashida said they raised the bar for the DBS: Broly movie, which made them realize a few things.
“The staffing, casting, and various other things for the movie were so good that we felt it can’t get any better than this, but… due to the experience, we’ll make things even better next time!” the producer said.
This article provides everything that is known about the Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero movie and all related news. As such, this article will be updated over time with news, rumors, and analysis. Meanwhile, let’s delve down into what is known for certain.
Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero trailer shocks fans with 3D Goku
During San Diego Comic-Con 2021, executive producer Akio Iyoku, producer Norhiro Hayashida, and Masako Nozawa (the Japanese voice of Goku) unveiled the official title of the new Dragon Ball Super movie along with a new teaser trailer and character design art by Toriyama.
The Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero trailer was simply a teaser showing off a 3D Goku moving similar to a scene in the Broly movie. It’s not a scene from the actual movie since the goal was to show Dragon Ball fans the look, movement, and feel of the 3D-animated Goku.
On Twitter, reactions have been mixed. Some complimented the smooth 3D animation that managed to pull off Goku’s hair. Others felt they did a good job but still preferred the 2D hand-drawn style established by Broly.
It’s currently unknown how much 3D animation the new DBS movie will use in its final form. It’s apparently a hybrid technique based on comments from the producers since they say it used a different technology for the visual expressions. But it’ll be interesting to see how the other characters turn out in the end.
Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero USA release date predictions
As of the last update, Toei Animation or any company related to the production of the anime has not officially confirmed the exact Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero release date in Japan.
It’s been confirmed that the DBS: Super Hero movie is coming out in Japanese theaters in 2022, but not the season or time frame. The Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero USA release date also hasn’t been announced yet.
Once the news is officially confirmed this article will be updated with the relevant information.
In the meantime, it’s possible to speculate about when the DBS: Super Hero premiere date will occur in the future.
November-December and May-July are typically considered the best timing for a tentpole film to have a chance at being a blockbuster premiere whereas January and February are considered the “dump months” for bad movies. So, it’s unlikely that the DBS: Super Hero movie release date will be in early 2022.
Another factor is that the coronavirus pandemic is impacted by seasonal weather changes. Since movie theaters are more likely to be open during the hotter summer months it’s the best target for blockbuster movies.
The international release with a Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero English dub will be planned out to optimize its chances in U.S. theaters and other countries like the UK, Canada, and more. The anime production committee and the company which buys the international rights will want to avoid competing with a big-name American movie that’ll overshadow the Dragon Ball Super movie 2022.
For example, the Demon Slayer: Mugen Train USA release date was in April 2021. Setting it slightly ahead of the May blockbusters was probably the wisest move, although the timing was largely forced by COVID-19 restrictions and the re-opening of American theaters.
On the other hand, the Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero USA release date will still likely be within a month of the Japanese theater premiere. The Dragon Ball Super: Broly movie premiered in Japan in mid-December 2018, whereas the U.S. release date by FUNimation was mid-January 2019. Despite being considered a dump month, Broly set box office records for an anime movie.
Based on this history, the Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero movie USA release date will either be timed to be soon after the Japanese premiere or timed for optimal exposure against the competition. Therefore, the Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero U.S. release date is predicted to be in Summer 2022.
Dragon Ball Super Moro story arc waits for Dragon Ball Super Season 2?
Fans have long speculated whether the new Dragon Ball Super movie 2022 would adapt the Moro story arc from the Galactic Patrol Prisoner saga in the Dragon Ball Super manga. After all, it’s the next manga story arc after the universe tournament of power arc that was in Dragon Ball Super Season 1.
Besides the new Super Hero title seemingly going in a different direction, Toriyama also confirmed that the Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero 2022 movie will have an original story… and an “unexpected character”!
“I really shouldn’t talk too much about the plot yet, but be prepared for some extreme and entertaining bouts, which may feature an unexpected character,” he wrote. “We’ll be charting through some unexplored territory in terms of visual aesthetics to give the audience an amazing ride, so I hope everybody will look forward to the new movie!”
Another large hint was the introduction of a new unnamed character that hasn’t been seen in any existing Dragon Ball story arcs.
Another character design showed Pan being noticeably older in comparison to the Tournament of Power arc. In the current Dragon Ball timeline, Dragon Ball Legends, DBS: Broly, and then the Moro arc takes place after the Tournament of Power in that chronological order.
Thus, based on Pan’s age relative to the timeline it seems like the DBS: Super Hero movie has a major time skip so it takes place sometime after the Moro arc.
The Dragon Ball Super Moro story arc is much more likely to be adapted by a new Dragon Ball Super Season 2 anime TV series. To put things in perspective, the tournament of power arc was 16 manga chapters long and corresponded to 55 anime episodes, whereas the Moro arc is 26 chapters.
Warning: The following contains spoilers for the DBS manga which may pertain to Dragon Ball Super Season 2.
Therefore, the Moro arc is simply too long to wedge into the limited runtime of a DBS movie. At the same time, the manga’s version of the tournament of power arc came out after the anime, so it’s difficult to make such comparisons.
The Dragon Ball Super manga is currently in the Granolah the Survivor arc. The story is very interesting since it has a bounty hunter attempting to steal the dragon balls to exact revenge on Frieza for destroying his people.
Let’s just hope the Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero 2022 movie sets up and announces Dragon Ball Super Season 2. Stay tuned!