After months of silence (and memes) on the matter, the Jojo’s panel at Anime Expo 2026 has finally given us a release schedule for Steel Ball Run’s second stage – September 25, with 11 episodes releasing weekly.
What’s Next for Johnny and Gyro
The Steel Ball Run race rages on, Gyro taking the lead in the race and Johnny in 4th, even in spite of his paraplegic condition. Hoping to cure his condition, Johnny attempts to get into the good graces of the no. 1, who possesses a supernatural, body-morphing power called the Spin.
The trailer seems to complicate the premise with many deadly, bizarre twists. Assassins run amok in supernatural deserts, attempted murders and fallen races litter the tracks of the race, Johnny can make his nails spin for some reason, and the President of the United States lies in the shadows amidst all of this. We sure missed you, Jojo’s.
Three new character posters have been shown shortly after the Anime Expo event: the aforementioned portly President Valentine, who will be the main antagonist of the part, a cowboy investigator and racer Mountain Tim, and an unseen pink racer named Hot Pants.
Welcome Back, Jojo Fridays
After its long absence during Stone Ocean’s run, the 14-year-long tradition of Jojo’s episodes every Friday is finally back.
Ever since Jojo’s was acquired by Netflix, the release schedules of every part have been put into limbo. Jojo’s sixth part, Stone Ocean, takes the brunt of this, with all of its episodes releasing into three very spaced out batches, with poor advertising on when the part would return. The strategy appears to be to prolong Netflix subscriptions by leveraging the popularity of Jojo’s, however, the strategy ultimately harmed Stone Ocean’s appeal and led it to having low watch counts on release.
Steel Ball Run appears to be accounting for the previous outcome, but hasn’t been completely compromised. Rather than release a group of episodes in batches, Part 7 appears to be treating its next 11 episodes like its own seasonal cours by having a 3-month, weekly release. It’s a big victory for Netflix to have listened and for weekly Jojo’s conversations to return, but the lack of transparency on the wider release schedule of the part is still concerning.
Still in Limbo
When Steel Ball Run returns, it will be more than half a year since we watched the premiere, with 4 months of silence up to this point. Will we get some news sooner, or will we be in the dark for sizable chunks of a year at a time until Steel Ball Run concludes?
Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure: Steel Ball Run will release on Netflix on September 25.
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