During the SDCC panel that featured executive producers Akio Iyoku and Hirihiro Hayashia as well as Goku voice actor, Masako Nozawa, we have some exciting details to share about the upcoming anime film. Note that we will update this article with more information as Toei Animation releases more details about Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero, so be sure to bookmark this page to get future updates. Here’s everything you need to know about Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero:
Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero Release Date: When will the movie come out?
Update: Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero is now showing in theaters in Japan, North America, and other regions. On March 18, Toei Animation announced that the release of Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero would be postponed due to the hack in the company. On April 14, the studio announced a new theatrical release date for Japan: June 11, 2022.
On May 10, Crunchyroll and Sony Pictures Entertainment confirmed that the movie will be released in theaters in North America and other regions this summer, starting in August. According to reports, the movie will be released in North America on August 19, 2022. It will be rated PG-13 in the U.S.. On June 14, Crunchyroll announced the official release dates for other regions, including the U.S., U.K, and countries in Latin America, Asia, and Australia.
August 18 in Australia, New Zealand, Mexico, Brazil, Peru, Chile, Argentina, Colombia, Central America, Ecuador, Bolivia, Uruguay, ParaguayAugust 19 in the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Ireland, South Africa, Zambia, VietnamAugust 26 in India, IndonesiaAugust 30 in Malaysia, BruneiAugust 31 in the PhilippinesSeptember 1 in SingaporeSeptember 8 in TaiwanSeptember 15 in South KoreaSeptember 29 in Hong Kong, Macao, Thailand
Hopefully, Season 2 of the Dragon Ball Super anime series will be released next year.
Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero Plot: What is the story of this anime movie?
Update: Since the movie has already been released in Japanese theaters, major spoilers for Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero have already been leaked.
Toei Animation revealed major plot details for Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero. Akiyo Ikoyu, the executive producer from Shueisha, said that they really wanted to emphasize that the film is all about the superhero vibes. In early March 2022, Toei Animation shared a new synopsis along with the latest trailer, teasing a mysterious “ultimate evil weapon”. Thanks to Todd Blankenship (@Herms98), we have an English translation for the official synopsis for Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero, which reads: Goku and Vegeta had their chance to shine in the previous Dragon Ball Super films, so based on what Toei Animation presented at the Comic-Con panel, other Z Fighters will get get their chance to shine in the new movie. Akio Iyoku, one of the producers of Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero, revealed in Toei Animation’s presentation that the story will be focused heavily on Gohan and Piccolo. Based on the character designs revealed, the plot of the next Dragon Ball Super film was confirmed that it will take place after the events of Dragon Ball Super: Broly movie, but before the 28th Tenkaichi Budokai Tournament, so this movie could be a link to the potential new season of the anime series. The panel also revealed Akira Toriyama’s original art featuring new characters, revealed to be the new androids Gamma 1 and Gamma 2.
Toei Animation shared a poster for Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero ahead of the NYCC 2021 panel for Dragon Ball Super, and the image features the two new characters. At SDCC, they also revealed a key art from Toriyama that features a top view of a waterfall location, and Piccolo’s house is seen in the area, but the studio hasn’t revealed the events that might take place in this location.
Based on this information, it looks like Piccolo’s home will be an important location in Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero. More details have been revealed about Piccolo’s home. A new image of Pan and Vegeta was also revealed:
The NYCC 2021 panel for the anime also revealed that the Red Ribbon Army and Broly will play a role in the story of Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero. The clip revealed at the event also teased Pan’s Super Saiyan training. The first trailer also revealed that Goku, Vegeta, and Buu being painted as villains, with the Saiyan Prince sporting his “Badman” shirt.
The trailer already revealed that Gohan will have an epic fight against Gamma 1 in the rain, a scene which went through a last-minute change. You can check out a brief clip of the dialogue from the movie featuring the voices of Gohan, Piccolo, Gamma 1, and Gamma 2:
The clip was shared by DbsHype from Jump Festa. It looks like the movie will put more spotlight on Gohan and Piccolo as they try to fight the Red Ribbon Army’s deadliest androids yet. You can also check out this Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero V Jump March 2022 issue special feature that sums up the key story of the movie:
At Anime Japan in March 2022, director Tetsuro Kodama shared an update about the wild setting of the movie, which is the headquarters of the Red Ribbon Army. “We developed the image based on the concept art drawn by Toriyama-sensei, and added various elements, “Kodama said (via DBSChronicles) “In this image, there is a large crater in a mountainous area, and a city like a park is built there. The concept is that the Red Ribbon Army actually resides here. Situated in a valley, the image is that of a place with fewer roads, making it difficult to use automobiles. Basically, the valley is traversed by monorail,” In April 2022, a new promotional poster for the movie revealed that Piccolo will go in an undercover mission to find out what the Red Ribbon Army are up to. The caption reveals that the strongest Namekian in the universe has found more than he bargained for within the Red Ribbon Army’s new headquarters.
During an April 2022 interview with Weekly TV Guide in Japan, Gamma 2 voice actor Mamoru Miyano revealed that Piccolo will have “great fight scenes”. The Red Ribbon Army’s Magenta is also said to fight a “certain someone” in the movie, but it’s still unknown who that will be. On May 6, Twitter user DbsHype shared a new image from the Weekly Shonen Jump that reveals Broly, Goku, and Vegeta teaming-up.
When in the shonen’s timeline does Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero take place?
A new promo for the movie confirms that Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero takes place after the Moro arc (Galactic Patrol Prisoner Saga) of the manga series, which takes place after the Universe Survival Saga of the anime series and the Dragon Ball Super: Broly movie.
In June 2022, it was confirmed that Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero will also take place after the Granolah the Survival Arc of the manga series.
Why is the next Dragon Ball Super movie called “Super Hero”?
According to Dragon Ball Super manga executive editor Akio Iyoku, the film will invoke more “superhero vibes” than previous instalments, and that creator Akira Toriyama is more focused on the superhero aspects in this film. However, Z-warriors in Dragon Ball are not usually portrayed as superheroes in the traditional sense, despite their incredible powers, so the title makes fans wonder how the film will bring those “superhero vibes”. However, there’s one Z-Warrior who played a superhero role in the past. Seven years after the Cell games, Gohan embraced the superhero life when he took the alter ego of “Great Saiyaman”. Piccolo and Pan, two of the most important characters to Gohan are already confirmed to appear in the film, so there was speculation that the movie’s “Super Hero” title refers to the return of Gohan’s Great Saiyaman alter-ego. However, none of the promos so far confirmed that Gohan will bring back this alter-ego in the movie. Instead, we will see the return of his Super Saiyan form, and there’s already a new Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero statue that reveals Gohan’s powerful form. In December 2021, a poster for the movie featuring the film’s key characters went public ahead of the Jump Festa 2021 event, and it features Gohan sporting his classic purple gi outfit. The official Dragon Ball website also shared a blurb, teasing Gohan’s big battle in the movie. The blurb makes it clear that Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero is super hero-themed. We already know that Gohan has a super hero alter-ego known as the Great Saiyaman, but it looks like the character is going back to his roots as he is seen dressed in his purple gi outfit. You can read more about the meaning of the movie’s title here. In Feb. 2022, producer Akio Iyoku explained the origin of the “Super Hero” title: “So, Earth is the stage this time. ‘How will the people on Earth stand up to this threat?’ is how we came up with this story. The title was decided after we had finished the story. There was a lot of discussion about having ‘Super’ in the title, but we wanted to convey the idea that everyone is a hero, which is why we decided on this title. It may be a bit cliche, but that’s what we came up with.” In early April 2022, a new promo revealed a look at Piccolo’s new form. The Namekian new transformation changes his body with an aura flash.The update comes from a merch revealing new art of Piccolo alongside Gohan.
Toshio Furukawa, the Japanese voice actor for Piccolo, shared his impressions on the Namekian’s “Potential Unleashed” form:
Dragon Ball Super Character Profiles: Who are the key characters?
Official character descriptions for Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero characters have been released to give us an idea which key characters the anime film will focus on. Check them out:
Goku – A Saiyan raised on Earth. He is still improving after his battles with Jiren and Broly! He is currently training under Whis.Gohan – The eldest son of Goku. Despite having potential that surpasses that of both Goku and Vegeta, he does not like to fight and lives a gentle life as a scholar.Piccolo – He’s a Namekian and the offspring of the Great Demon King Piccolo. He used to be Goku’s arch-enemy. He trained Gohan and now trains Pan.Vegeta – The proud prince of all Saiyans and Trunks’ father. He trains with Whis in order to one day defeat Goku.Pan – Gohan and Videl’s first-born daughter. Although she is only three years old, she’s been training under Piccolo and shows signs of having great potential.Gamma 1 – The first of the new Android series created by Dr. Hedo. He puts on a red cape and has a strong sense of loyalty with a calming personality.Gamma 2 – The second of the new Android series created by Dr. Hedo. He puts on a blue cape and is sometimes chided by Gamma 1 for his slightly flippant attitude.Dr. Hedo – A genius scientist employed by the Red Ribbon Army. Dr. Hedo possesses highly advanced Android technology.Magenta – President of Red Pharmaceuticals, the current public face of the Red Ribbon Army. In order to rebuild the army, he gets in touch with Dr. Hedo.Carmine – Magenta’s confidant and his driver, characterized by his large pompadour.
According to a recent update to the voice cast of Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero, Takeshi Kusao was added to the roster. For those unfamiliar, Kusao is the voice of both Kid Trunks and Future Trunks. The creators of the film haven’t officially confirmed the appearance of either version of Trunks, but fans are expecting that Trunks from the main timeline will show up. Shenron, the legendary green wish-granting dragon, was also confirmed to appear in the movie, and his new look was revealed in a promo.
Update: In January 2022, images of Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero merchandise surfaced online, and it revealed Gohan’s new look and teased two hidden characters. Who could they be?
In February 2022, another merch for the movie blacked out two mysterious characters. But could they be the grown-up Goten and Trunks that were just revealed on Feb. 19?
Goten and Trunks’ fusion form, Gotenks, is also confirmed to appear in the film, and we already have our first official look. The look isn’t just an older version of the fused form, but also a hilarious look that’s clearly a result of Goten and Trunks failing to perform the dance correctly as they had done several times in the past. A promo for the movie revealed another look at this hilarious Gotenks form. A merchandise for the movie also teased the return of Ultimate Gohan, a powerful form that debuted in Dragon Ball Z’s Buu Saga. Gohan’s powerful form was unlocked by Elder Kaioshin. Dragon Ball Super also showed Gohan’s Ultimate form get an upgrade, so he can join Universe 7’s team in the Tournament of Power. It’s still unclear how strong Gohan’s Ultimate form will be compared to Goku’s complete Ultra Instinct form or Vegeta’s Ultra-Ego form, but it looks like the young Saiyan will not be holding back in his battle against Gamma 1 and Gamma 2. Along with the release of the latest trailer, a new art featuring the movie’s huge cast has been revealed:
A set of promo card artwork for Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero went live in Japan, and while it one of the images reveal a closer look at Goten and Trunks:
Two life-size statues for Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero were unleashed at this year’s Anime Japan. Several promo pages for the movie were also shared at Anime Japan, and as you can see below, the movie flyer features Cheelai, Broly’s current best friend. There’s a rumor that they will have a baby in the movie.
A promo for the movie also teases that Broly will unleash his berserk form again, and it looks like he will try to learn how to control his power during his training with Goku and Vegeta.
Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero trailers: Are there trailers for the movie?
A short teaser for Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero premiered at the Comic-Con panel, but it doesn’t feature any actual footage from the movie. It only shows Goku (in base form) looking pumped-up and ready to battle, teasing the film’s animation style that’s said to use different technology to create a mind-blowing experience we’ve never seen in any Dragon Ball film before. At New York Comic-Con 2021, the Dragon Ball Super panel revealed the first trailer for Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero, teasing a new crisis and evil organization from the shadows. The trailer featured 3D animations, and gave us a glimpse at the new alien characters, including Gamma 1 and 2 as well as the return of Broly. The trailer also shows a powered-up Pan, so we might see Gohan and Videl’s daughter unleash her Super Saiyan powers in the movie.
In November 2021, producer Norihiro Hayashida teased the movie’s epic visual effects. “Now, as you all know, the much-anticipated new movie Dragon Ball Super: Superhero will be released in 2022,” the producer wrote. “This movie will feature new production techniques and will be filled with spectacular visuals, so please look forward to it! On Dec. 17, 2021, the special panel for the anime at Jump Festa 2021 debuted a new trailer that confirms Son Gohan’s major role in the movie. Watch the trailer below:
In March 2022, Toei Animation released another trailer for Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero, which reveals Son Gohan’s new Super Saiyan look, Piccolo’s new transformation, and Broly vs. Beerus. It also teases a mysterious villain the Red Ribbon Army describes as the “worst existence that has yet to be seen in born”.
On May 27, Toei released another trailer showing more of Gohan and Piccolo fighting Gamma 1 and Gamma 2. The end of the trailer teases the mysterious villain housed inside the chamber from the Red Ribbon Army headquarters.
Several clips from the movie have also been released by Toei Animation, including this scene with Dr. Hedo, the genius creator of Gamma 1 and Gamma 2. A clip of Piccolo vs. Gamma 2 fight was also revealed. In late June 2022, a new trailer was released in Japan, debuting the first official footage of Cell Max.
In July, Toei Animation lifted the ban on major spoilers for Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero, and released a new trailer that’s all about Gohan.
Starting Aug. 16, Fortnite players can also watch an exclusive English dub clip from Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero in the game. This is part of the Fortnite x Dragon Ball collaboration event.
Who is the mysterious villain teased in the latest trailer?
The latest Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero trailer teases a mysterious villain housed inside a huge spherical tank, and it turns out to be Cell Max. In April 2022, a promo for the movie teased a new villain who’s can transform into something more, and there’s also a set of toys that are fueling more speculation to this theory. The new cyborg villain is known as “Hachimaru”, which is described to have “terrifying abilities”, but the studio hasn’t revealed additional details about what those abilities could be. The agent’s wasp-like design looks like an effective way for the genius scientist Dr. Hedo to gather material from various powerful warriors in order to create a new generation of androids for the Red Ribbon Army. There’s also a new batch of Ichiban Kuji Dragon Ball figures that’s clearly connected to Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero, and the set includes figures of Super Saiyan Gohan, “Potentially Unlocked” Piccolo, Yadarat Goku, and First-Form Cell!
Both new versions of Gohan and Piccolo are already confirmed to appear in the movie, so it’s easy to assume that the other two will also appear. However, they could easily be just throwbacks to Dragon Ball Z.
What about the CGI animation in the movie?
During the shonen’s online panel about Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero in Feb. 2022, director Tetsuro Kodama did a brief Q&A session, and according to the filmmaker, the movie’s CG animation came from their mission to innovate the shonen franchise created by Akira Toriyama. “We also grew up right in the middle of the Shonen Jump ‘Dragon Ball’ generation and since then, the fandom has just gotten bigger and bigger to become this huge phenomenon. But we have a mission to break new ground and help cultivate new fans. So what type and style of animation would help to achieve that goal? That’s where this project got started,” he said. “When it comes to this new style, the biggest thing that distinguishes it is the shadows. We took an approach to make them look like they’re blurry or have a more gradual blend which gives a softer impression overall. That’s one of the big differences,” Kodama explained. “I also want to point out that characters in this film move a lot.”
What is the runtime of Dragon Super: Super Hero?
According to the information shared by Le Grand REX Theaters over in France, Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero will have a runtime of 120 minutes, which is 20 minutes more than Dragon Ball Super: Broly’s 1 hour-and-40-minute runtime. However, Japanese theater chain Umeda Burg confirms that the runtime is 100 minutes long (1 hour and 40 minutes long).
Is there a manga adaptation for Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero?
If you’re wondering if Akira Toriyama and Toyotarou have created a manga adaptation for Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero, you may want to check out the reasons why the manga is different from the anime here. At this time, Shueisha, the official publisher of the Dragon Ball manga series, hasn’t confirmed if they will release a manga adaptation for Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero, but assuming that the movie will follow previous trends, it’s likely that there will not be any manga adaptations. However, on March 11, the cover images for two versions of the light novel adaptation of Dragon Ball Super Hero were revealed. Masatoshi Kusakabe will be the author of the light novel based on character designs by Dragon Ball creator Akira Toriyama. This version will have a novelized version of the film’s lot along with screenshots from the film.
There will also be a light novel in Shueisha Mirai Bunko version, which will be authored by Sui Ogawa. In the Mirai Bunko version, only the movie’s plot will be turned into a novel. Both versions of the Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero light novel will be available in Japan on April 25, 2022, just three days after the Japanese theatrical release of the film.
