A character designer for the Naruto animated series gave actor Michael B. Jordan (Black Panther, Creed) a special illustration of the beloved ninja.
Jordan, a huge Naruto fan, recently visited Pierrot, the studio that produces the Naruto anime. Tetsuya Nishio, who serves as one of the series’ character designers, painted Jordan a special illustration to commemorate the actor’s visit. Pierrot highlighted this on his Twitter page, featuring a photo of Jordan holding up the drawing while giving the camera a thumbs up.
Naruto’s iconic status has earned the orange-clad ninja recognition from millions of fans around the globe. As of March 2023, the series has more than 250 million copies in circulation worldwide, ranking in the top 10 best-selling comic books of all time. Over 4.6 million fans also participated in a global poll to determine the franchise’s favorite character, ultimately Naruto’s father, Minato. In January, Naruto even received a cheery nod from NFL rerun Jamaal Williams at a Sunday Night Football game, jokingly calling himself “The First Kazekage Swagg, leader of Den’s Hidden Villages.” .”
One Piece author confesses his love for Naruto
Naruto has also received rave reviews from other popular manga artists, including One Piece creator Eiichiro Oda. A conversation has been published between the two authors revealing that they have shared a friendly rivalry for many years. During this discussion, Oda expressed that, out of all the manga that existed at the time One Piece was created, “the one that made me work the hardest was Naruto, absolutely not.” He also said that he believes Naruto has a larger following than One Piece. Oda reiterated this point while discussing Netflix’s upcoming live-action One Piece series, which he calls the series’ last chance to “go global”.
Naruto and Boruto .’s Shōnen Jump Run
Masashi Kishimoto’s Naruto manga ran in Weekly Shōnen Jump from September 1999 to November 2014. A sequel to the series, Boruto: Naruto Next Generations, launched in the same issue in May 2016. Naruto’s Son Adventures, the manga is currently being released between its “Almighty” part, which features a reality swap between Boruto and his adopted brother, Kawaki. Season I of Pierrot’s Boruto anime ended on March 26. Although the studio has given the green light for Season II to start production, it has yet to confirm a release date.
Naruto and Boruto: Naruto Next Generations is available in English from VIZ. Pierrot’s respective anime adaptations are available on Hulu and Crunchyroll.
Source: Twitter