Crunchyroll Boss Explains the Reason Behind 'Solo Leveling' Season 3’s Delayed Renewal

The past week has brought a flurry of updates regarding the status of Solo Leveling Season 3. While none of those reports have officially confirmed a third installment, each strengthens the case for its return. From cryptic social media teases from an actor and producer to a revealing online panel featuring producers Sota Furuhashi and Atsushi Kaneko, all signs point towards an inevitable green light. The latest update on the anime’s future comes from Crunchyroll President Rahul Purini, who has explained the reason why the Season 3 pick-up is taking so long.

Solo Leveling has earned its reputation not only for its thrilling demon-hunting narrative but also for its polished visual production. It would seem that ensuring that the show does not compromise on this quality is part of the reason behind the delay. When asked in a recent interview with Deadline whether the show’s global popularity is enough to guarantee another season, Purini responded with an uncertain “We hope so.” He went on to explain that the creators’ busy schedules have contributed to the delay saying; “The [series] creators want to work on lot of shows. Anime is really popular, so there’s a lot of demand, and so we have to find the right time to get started on the next season.”

Fan Support Could Help Move the Needle on ‘Solo Leveling’ Season 3

If Solo Leveling Season 3 is to become a quick reality, producers Furuhashi and Kaneko advised during a recent Reddit panel that fan support will play a role. From Purini’s revelations above, it appears that the creators are prioritizing other projects, and it makes sense that strong fan demand might help tip the scales. “We need your energy! If we’re going to make a Season 3, it’s going to take all the support and energy from the fans,” the pair wrote while answering fan questions on the platform. Further adding, “If you want a Season 3, it’s the energy from all of you across these subreddits and fan communities that will help make it happen.”

While the wait for Solo Leveling Season 3 continues to test fans’ patience, the delay is far from a sign of the anime’s waning influence. Purini further revealed that the anime’s success is influencing the creative strategy of the streamer, inspiring the team to “take more experiments.” One such experiment is the streamer’s anime adaptation of the action-adventure video game Ghost of Tsushima. “It is a game IP that we know gaming fans love, and that’s one of the reasons we want to bring it to anime; to see if we can recreate that same phenomenon,” the president explained. With Ghost of Tsushima now in active development, it’s possible that the focus on launching new tentpole projects may have nudged Solo Leveling Season 3 slightly further down the production queue, for now. As always, stay tuned for future updates.