Jujutsu Kaisen's Yuji Itadori appears in DC Comics' Nightwing issue 113

On Tuesday, April 16, 2024, X user @Go_Jover (Myamura), a known Jujutsu Kaisen series leaker, shared an interesting fact from a recent DC Comics release. According to Myamura, the latest 113th issue of DC Comics’ current NIGHTWING comic series saw a character modeled after protagonist Yuji Itadori appear.

While the Jujutsu Kaisen main character isn’t given any dialogue and is simply seen in the background of a crowded panel, it’s nevertheless exciting to see the reference made. It’s also very clearly Yuji considering the appearance of the background character, especially his clothes and hair color/design.

Although some, including Myamura, are asserting that Yuji is now “canon” in the DC Universe (DCU) following this latest appearance, it’s most likely a sneaky reference rather than a “Yuji” character being introduced.

Nevertheless, Jujutsu Kaisen fans are still excited to see their series becoming something of a cultural phenomenon following the success of season 2 and the ongoing, enthralling events in the manga.

Yuji Itadori reference in DC Comics’ latest NIGHTWING release has fans hoping for an official Jujutsu Kaisen collaboration

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As mentioned above, the appearance of Jujutsu Kaisen’s Yuji Itadori in the latest edition of DC Comics’ NIGHTWING series has fans excitedly discussing the possibilities of an official collaboration. While this reference certainly could pave the way for an official collaboration, it’s not exactly a guarantee that such a project will come solely based on this one instance.

For example, several other similar references, both in comics and in other manga series, have occurred with no larger collaborations or projects being spawned by them. One recent example is Deadpool (2024)’s reference to creator, author, and illustrator Tatsuki Fujimoto’s Chainsaw Man manga in its debut issue.

Another example contained within the manga industry is My Hero Academia mangaka Kohei Horikoshi, who also references Chainsaw Man in his series via the titular character appearing in the background. While certainly always exciting and welcome to occur, these references don’t necessarily mean a larger collaboration is coming between the series involved.

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The ongoing NIGHTWING series in which Yuji Itadori is seemingly referenced first began in September 2016. The series began publication as a part of the DC Rebirth relaunch initiative. The series is written by Tim Seeley and illustrated by Yanick Paquette, both of whom have significant prior DC Comics credits to their names.

The Jujutsu Kaisen manga series was created by author and illustrator Gege Akutami and first debuted in Shueisha’s Weekly Shonen Jump manga publication magazine in March 2018. The series is still ongoing and regularly serialized in Weekly Shonen Jump today, and it is actively progressing through its alleged final arc.

The series has also been adapted into a television anime from MAPPA Studios, with Sunghoo Park directing the first season and Shota Goshozono directing the most recent second season. Although the third season was confirmed soon after the second season concluded, no additional details were released as of the time this article was written.