Mononoke Reveals New Project With a Third Medicine Seller

A new Medicine Seller steps forward

The official account for the Mononoke anime franchise announced on July 5 that a new project is underway, revealing it with a short teaser and the tagline that the Mononoke new project has begun. At the center of the reveal is a brand new Medicine Seller, the enigmatic exorcist who anchors every entry in this supernatural anthology.

What was announced

The new character is named Ken no Tsurugi, framed as the Yang blade within the series' recurring yin and yang and eight trigrams motif. Voice actor Hirofumi Araki takes the role, and the character design comes from Kitsuneko Nagata, who designed the cast of the recent Mononoke film trilogy. Series director Kenji Nakamura presented the new design himself. According to Anime News Network, Nakamura describes Ken no Tsurugi as a figure with two faces, relaxed and talkative before a haunting begins and then turning sharp and unnervingly focused once a spirit reveals itself.

The announcement stopped short of one key detail. It did not confirm whether the new project is a film or a television series, and no release window, additional staff, or further cast were given. For now the reveal is a statement of intent paired with a first look at its lead. The reveal quickly drew a response online, with the franchise noting that terms tied to the announcement had begun trending shortly after it went out.

Three tales, three Medicine Sellers

Alongside the screen project, the franchise confirmed a set of three new prose stories. Each one will spotlight a different Medicine Seller, and all three will be published under the Kadokawa Bunko label. The series has been building a small family of these exorcists: the original Medicine Seller, the version introduced across the film trilogy, and now Ken no Tsurugi, giving the novels one protagonist apiece. The franchise says to await further news on all of it.

Background

Mononoke began as a 2007 television anime, itself a spin off of the horror anthology Ayakashi: Samurai Horror Tales, following a nameless Medicine Seller who slays formless spirits called mononoke by uncovering their Form, Truth, and Reason. The property returned as a film trilogy, opening with Karakasa in 2024, continuing with the Fire Rat chapter in 2025, and closing with Chapter III, Snake God, which reached Japanese theaters this year and is still in release. This new project extends that revival rather than closing it, keeping the anthology's distinctive washi paper textures and kabuki inspired visuals in play for whatever comes next.