The first teaser trailer for the highly anticipated JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: Part 7 - Steel Ball Run anime adaptation was released this week. The teaser video sets the stage for the massive cross-country horse race, introducing us to some of the main characters along with the actors who will voice them.
As a quick summary, JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: Steel Ball Run is the seventh part of the long-running manga series by Hirohiko Araki. Set in an alternate universe, the story takes place in the United States in 1890 during the Steel Ball Run horse race, a brutal, high-stakes competition that spans from San Diego to New York with a jaw-dropping $50 million prize on the line.
The story primarily follows the unlikely duo of Johnny Joestar, a paraplegic former jockey desperate to reclaim his purpose, and Gyro Zeppeli, a disgraced executioner with mysterious steel ball techniques.
"It’s 1890, in America, the Steel Ball Run — the first horse racing championship across the North American continent — was about to begin," the synopsis reads. "Spanning around 4,000 miles, the race offered 50 million dollars as the winning prize. Johnny Joestar, once being hailed as a genius jockey, is now paralysed and lost in despair. He finds hope in the mysterious phenomena caused by Gyro Zeppeli, an outlaw aiming to win the race, and determines to participate in the Steel Ball Run Race. Each having their own goal in mind, the two form an alliance and set foot upon the gruelling adventure and race."
During the livestream, it was revealed that Johnny Joestar will be voiced by Shogo Sakata (Aki in Chainsaw Man), while Gyro Zeppeli will be voiced by Yohei Azakami (Ron in Ron Kamonohashi's Forbidden Deductions).
Additional voice cast members include Kaito Ishikawa (Tenya Iida in My Hero Academia) as Diego Brando, Rie Takahashi (Yuzuriha in Hell's Paradise), and Kenta Miyake (Avdol in JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: Stardust Crusaders) as Steven Steel. The return of previous JoJo voice actors has been met with hesitation by some fans.
The creative team behind Steel Ball Run brings back several familiar names. Directors Yasuhiro Kimura and Hideya Takahashi, known for their work on Golden Wind, reunite alongside series director Toshiyuki Kato. Scriptwriter Yasuko Kobayashi, a cornerstone of the franchise, once again pens the story. Daisuke Tsumagari returns to shape the character designs, while Yugo Kanno continues his acclaimed musical legacy from Parts 3-6. Rounding out the team is veteran sound director Yoshikazu Iwanami. David Production, the studio that has overseen every previous JoJo adaptation, will once again handle animation on Steel Ball Run.
JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: Part 7 - Steel Ball Run will premiere in 2026, although we don't have an exact release date. The series will stream worldwide on Netflix. Crunchyroll is currently home to parts one through five of JoJo's Bizarre Adventure, while the entire series, including the latest Part 6: Stone Ocean, is available exclusively on Netflix.