Frequently Asked Questions
Sakamoto Days is a popular Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Yuto Suzuki. It began serialization in Shueisha's Weekly Shōnen Jump in November 2020 and has since become a major hit, with over 15 million copies in circulation by mid-2025. The story follows Taro Sakamoto, a once-unrivaled legendary hitman who was feared by the criminal underworld but idolized by his peers. Sakamoto's life changed forever when he fell in love with a convenience store clerk named Aoi, leading him to retire, get married, and settle into a quiet life as a family man. Years after his retirement, Sakamoto has become a portly, humble shopkeeper running a neighborhood convenience store. However, his peaceful life is constantly disrupted when former enemies and assassins from his past come seeking revenge or his legendary head. Despite his changed appearance and a "no-kill" policy enforced by his wife, Sakamoto remains exceptionally powerful. Together with a band of allies—including a telepathic hitman named Shin and a Chinese triad member named Lu—Sakamoto must protect his family and his quiet life from the ever-encroaching dangers of the assassin world.
Sakamoto Days Season 2 was officially announced on December 20, 2025, during the series' dedicated stage event at Jump Festa '26 in Chiba, Japan. The announcement came shortly after the conclusion of the first season's second part, confirming that the high-octane adaptation of Yuto Suzuki's manga would continue due to its massive global success on streaming platforms and positive reception from fans. At Jump Festa '26, the production committee unveiled a "Super Teaser Visual" featuring Sakamoto and his core team in a new high-stakes setting, along with a brief promotional video (PV) that teased the next major arcs from the manga. While a specific release date was not provided, the event confirmed that TMS Entertainment would return for production, ensuring continuity in the show's stylized action and comedy.
Season 1 of Sakamoto Days premiered on January 11, 2025. The season was structured as a "split-cour" series, meaning it was divided into two distinct parts that aired months apart. The first part (Cour 1) ran from January through March 2025, introducing viewers to Sakamoto's retired life and his initial clashes with the assassin organization known as Slur/X. The first season consisted of 22 episodes in total. Following a short hiatus, the second part (Cour 2) began airing on July 14, 2025. This second half of the season featured 11 episodes and focused on more intense storylines, including the "Death Row Prisoners" and "JCC Transfer Exams" arcs. Part 1 was a major success for Netflix, spending 10 consecutive weeks on their global Top 10 list for non-English television.
The Japanese voice cast for the Sakamoto Days anime is led by the prolific Tomokazu Sugita (known for Gintama), who voices the protagonist Taro Sakamoto. Sugita brings a unique balance of comedic dryness and intimidating gravitas to the role of the retired hitman. Other key Japanese cast members include Nobunaga Shimazaki as the telepathic Shin Asakura, Ayane Sakura as Lu Shaotang, Nao Toyama as Sakamoto's wife Aoi, and Natsuki Hanae as the mysterious Nagumo. In the English dub, the main character Taro Sakamoto is voiced by Matthew Mercer, a veteran voice actor known for his roles in Attack on Titan and Critical Role. The English cast also features Dallas Liu as Shin, Rosalie Chiang as Lu Shaotang, and Jacob Bertrand as Gaku. The dub received praise for its casting choices, particularly for bringing in well-known actors to match the dynamic personality of the manga's colorful cast.
The Sakamoto Days anime is produced by TMS Entertainment, a legendary studio known for series like Lupin the 3rd, Dr. Stone, and Baki. The production team is led by director Masaki Watanabe, who has emphasized maintaining the manga's fluid, cinematic action and unique visual texture. The series composition and scripts are handled by Taku Kishimoto, known for his work on Haikyu!! and Blue Lock, ensuring the story balances intense combat with its signature slice-of-life comedy. Key staff members also include character designer Yo Moriyama, who adapted Yuto Suzuki's distinctive art style for animation, and renowned composer Yuki Hayashi (My Hero Academia), who provides the high-energy soundtrack. The animation team utilized specialized techniques to replicate the "paper texture" of the manga in its action sequences, which became a defining aesthetic of the show during its 2025 run.
Fans worldwide can watch the Sakamoto Days anime exclusively on Netflix, which serves as the global streaming home for the series. Netflix releases new episodes weekly, often coinciding with or shortly after the Japanese television broadcast. In Japan, the series is broadcast on TV Tokyo and its affiliates, typically airing late-night slots on Saturdays or Mondays depending on the specific cour. Because the series is a Netflix exclusive for international audiences, it is available with both original Japanese audio (with subtitles) and a high-quality English dub in most regions. The streaming platform has also highlighted the series as one of its most-watched anime titles of 2025, with tens of millions of hours viewed globally across both parts of Season 1.
The Sakamoto Days live-action film is a theatrical adaptation produced by Credeus and Avex Pictures, set to premiere in Japan on April 29, 2026. The film is written and directed by Yūichi Fukuda, a filmmaker well-known for his successful live-action manga adaptations like Gintama and The Disastrous Life of Saiki K. The movie aims to capture the same mix of over-the-top action and domestic comedy that made the manga famous. The film stars popular actor and idol Ren Meguro as Taro Sakamoto. Meguro, a member of the group Snow Man, reportedly took on the role as a fan of the original manga. The casting for other major characters, such as Shin and Lu, is expected to be revealed closer to the 2026 release date, with the action choreography being handled by Keiya Tabuchi to ensure the film lives up to the manga's reputation for creative fight scenes.
The Sakamoto Days manga is published in English by Viz Media, which handles both the physical print releases and digital distribution in North America. For those who want to keep up with the latest chapters as they are released in Japan, the series is available for free with simultaneous English translation on the Manga Plus app and website, operated by Shueisha. Viz Media began releasing physical volumes of the manga in April 2022, and as of late 2025, they have released over 15 volumes in print. Additionally, a spin-off manga titled Sakamoto Holidays and several light novels, such as Sakamoto Days: Assassin's Method, have also been licensed by Viz for English publication, with some releases scheduled for late 2025 and early 2026.
The Sakamoto Days manga officially debuted in Weekly Shōnen Jump on November 21, 2020. However, the concept originated as a "prototype" one-shot titled SAKAMOTO, which Yuto Suzuki published in Jump Giga on December 26, 2019. The one-shot featured the core premise: a legendary, overweight hitman living a quiet life after falling in love. Due to the high number of views and positive feedback (nearly 600,000 views in its first week), Shueisha greenlit the concept for full serialization. Suzuki's earlier one-shots, such as Garaku and Locker Room, also helped establish his reputation for unique action-comedy storytelling. Garaku, published in early 2019, even introduced a character similar to the fan-favorite swordsman Takamura. Since its serialization began, Sakamoto Days has evolved from a episodic "hitman of the week" comedy into a complex battle shonen with large-scale arcs, such as the "JCC Transfer Exams" and the "Final Battle" arc, which began in August 2025.
Sakamoto Days stands out for its masterful blend of cinematic action and domestic "slice-of-life" comedy. The premise—a "John Wick-style" assassin who has retired to become a "pudgey" dad—subverts traditional action tropes by making the hero's biggest challenge his "no-kill" policy and his mundane family responsibilities. The tone shifts seamlessly from lighthearted moments at the convenience store to some of the most creatively choreographed and brutal fight scenes in modern manga. The series is particularly praised for its visual storytelling and choreography. Unlike many series that rely on supernatural powers, Sakamoto Days focuses on physical combat and the clever use of everyday environments and objects (like umbrellas, pens, or store shelves) as deadly weapons. This grounded yet over-the-top approach, combined with a lovable cast and themes of redemption and fatherhood, makes it a unique and refreshing entry in the action genre.