Pierrot, the anime studio behind hit series Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War, will continue to produce higher-quality anime faster for fans worldwide. A producer for the studio, which has been in operation for over four decades, confirmed the company’s new direction in a recently aired documentary.

NHK World Japan aired a documentary about the legendary animation studio, making it available to anime fans online (currently listed until Jan. 26, 2026). The English-translated documentary briefly discussed the 45-year-old history of Pierrot and its two biggest hits, Naruto and Bleach. In particular, Pierrot’s current production of Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War was discussed along with the company’s rebranding of its second studio, Pierrot Films.

Producer Yoshihiro Tominaga discussed Pierrot’s past inability to compete globally in the anime market. The company’s competitors were expanding internationally with critically acclaimed series like My Hero Academia and Demon Slayer. With the global market becoming more important than ever, Pierrot established Pierrot Films to help the company produce anime series with higher-quality animation at a more efficient pace.

"To survive in animation nowadays, you must make high-quality series and be able to sell them globally," Tominaga said. "Pierrot was seen as not very skilled at that." Tominaga recruited new and highly skilled talents from outside the company and expanded the team working on each episode. The production schedule was also expanded from under a year to over a year and a half to ensure better quality. As Tominaga explained, the rebranding to Pierrot Films "showed our commitment. No more excuses about time or money. This was our way of moving forward without looking back."

Although Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War is considered Pierrot’s strongest production in years, Pierrot Films also produced Yatagarasu: The Raven Does Not Choose Its Master before taking over Bleach: TYBW Part 3. The former historical fantasy anime was praised highly for its story and beautiful animation, signaling a bright future for future episodes of Bleach. Pierrot returned to the Bleach series after 10 years with the first season of Bleach: TYBW, which premiered on Oct. 11, 2022. The most recent season, Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War Part 3 - The Conflict, aired from Oct. 5 to Dec. 28, 2024.

In December 2024, Pierrot announced Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War Part 4: The Calamity with a teaser trailer and visual. The new season's release date has yet to be announced. Previous episodes of Bleach: TYBW are available to stream on Hulu and Disney+ for bundled subscribers. "When a new enemy appears, Substitute Soul Reaper Ichigo Kurosaki jumps back into the battlefield with his Zanpakuto to help those in need," the series’ official description on Hulu reads. The 2004 Bleach anime TV series and movies are likewise available on Hulu.

Source: NHK World Japan