Demon Slayer Season 4 Release Date
We finally know more about Demon Slayer Season 4, AKA the Hashira Training arc. With 2024 just around the corner, animation studio Ufotable has revealed its plans for next year – including the release window for the new season and upcoming movie.
Demon Slayer season 4 release date is Spring 2024.
We would expect the first episode to land in April 2024. Why? The first and third seasons of Demon Slayer premiered in April, so the anime continues that tradition. The Spring Anime season usually starts in April, so it’s certain that Tanjiro will be back.
Titled ‘To the Hashira Training’, the movie will be released in February 2024. It will give fans a chance to see the first episode a few months earlier.
To the Hashira Training: Is Demon Slayer Season 4 a Movie?
Demon Slayer Hashira Training Arc
Demon Slayer season 4 is not a movie. Instead, it will follow the same path as the Swordsmith Village arc: the first episode will tie into the previous season’s finale as a preview of sorts.
The new Demon Slayer “movie” titled To the Hashira Training (we hesitate to call it a full-on feature-length adventure) will combine episode 11 of the Swordsmith Village arc with season 4 episode 1.
It will have a rolling release in February worldwide. The actual 4th season of Demon Slayer, including the first episode, will be released later in the spring of 2024.
Demon Slayer Season 4 Story: Which Manga Chapters Is It Adapting?
Demon Slayer Season 4 will follow the end of the Swordsmith Village arc (Chapters 98-127 of the manga) by adapting the Hashira Training arc (Chapters 128-136). If you follow the companion releases, this is the second half of volume 15 and the first three chapters in volume 16.
No spoilers, but the source material gives us a taste of what to expect.
The book’s synopsis reads: “Tanjiro follows the Stone Hashira Himejima, who intends to prepare him for the battles to come. The training to become Hashira – a high-ranking member of the Demon Slayer Corps – is intense and demanding.” and getting Himejima’s approval seems impossible, but Tanjiro won’t give up!”
Simply put, expect Tanjiro to use more of his abilities with the help of various Hashiras. Stone Hashira, Water Hashira, Insect Hashira, Wind Hashira, and Snake Hashira have already been confirmed for the Hashira Training arc.
The upcoming season should also revolve around the emergence of Nezuko’s new powers, namely her ability to ‘conquer the sun’ and exist as a demon in the daylight. Series antagonist Muzan Kibutsuji, as shown in the finale of Swordsmith Village, is aware of this development and will lash out at her.
Looking further ahead, it also seems to be the last step before the very final story of the anime, called the Final Battle arc.
Demon Slayer Season 4 Cast
Tanjiro (Natsuki Hanae), Zenitsu (Hiro Shimono), Inosuke (Yoshitsugu Matsuoka), and Nezuko (Akari Kitou) are all expected to play a role in Hashiro’s training arc.
Water Hashira Giyu Tomioka (Takahiro Sakurai), Snake Hashira Obanai Iguro (Kenichi Suzumura), Insect Hashira Shinobu Kocho (Saori Hayami), Wind Hashira Sanemi Shinazugawa (Tomokazu Seki), Mist Hashira (Kengo Kawanshi), Hanazawawa and Stone Hashira Gyomei Himejima ( Tomokazu Sugita) will be the main presence as Tanjiro begins his training. Former Sound Hashira Tengen Uzui (Katsuyuki Konishi) will also return.
Demon Slayer Season 4 Trailer: First Hashira Training Trailer
The first trailer for the Hashira Training arc was released earlier this year. While it doesn’t contain any footage from the upcoming season, it does feature new key art of all the remaining Hashira. Expect each of them to lead Tanjiro to a potential waiting Hashiro – as well as retaliate against the survivors of the twelve kizuki/upper moons.
The first main trailer for Demon Slayer Season 4, which you can see above, is similarly limited in what it shows from the new season. Contains a quick recap of the arcs covered so far plus confirmed character pairings in the new arc. There are also reports of a screening of To the Hashira and what appear to be original animation clips from Demon Slayer season 4.
Demon Slayer season 4 episode count: how many episodes are there in the Hashira training arc?
The first season of Demon Slayer consisted of 26 episodes – but the number of episodes has been decreasing since then. The Mugen Train and Entertainment District arcs had seven and 11 episodes respectively, while Swordsmith Village also had 11 episodes.
However, Hashira Training only has a small amount of source material to draw from. Without some serious padding, it’s unlikely to match even Mugen Train’s shortened seven-part run. While it’s been confirmed to be a full season, we wouldn’t be surprised if it’s a brief pit stop on the way to bigger things – a six-episode season (tops) would be our guess. But even something as short as two or three episodes can be realistic, especially given the hour-long premiere.
Where to watch Demon Slayer
The first three seasons of Demon Slayer are available to watch here and on Funimation. The first three seasons are now also available on Netflix and Hulu in some regions.
