Japan’s biggest manga publisher has officially announced it is ending its Marvel publishing agreement with Disney ahead of some of the most hotly anticipated releases of the year.
Per an announcement from the official Shonen Jump+ X (formerly Twitter) account, the fan-favorite manga publisher behind Weekly Shonen Jump (One Piece, Dragon Ball, Naruto) is officially ending its publishing agreement with Disney covering manga adaptations of Marvel characters. The decision means several officially licensed Marvel manga published by Shueisha will soon go out of print, as well as be removed from digital storefronts.
The company’s official statement reads, “Shueisha Inc. will terminate its contract with Walt Disney Japan Co., Ltd. regarding the publication of comic adaptations of MARVEL characters, effective September 30, 2026… We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience this may cause to our customers. We kindly ask for your understanding and cooperation in this matter.”
Shonen Jump Publisher Announces End of Marvel Partnership With Disney
The statement was published alongside a notice outlining the timeline for the discontinuation of various Marvel manga titles. Print editions of titles such as MARVEL x Shonen Jump+ SUPER COLLABORATION, SECRET REVERSE, Spider-Man: Octopus Girl, Spider-Man: Kizuna and Deadpool: SAMURAI will remain available until existing stock is sold out. While Shueisha encourages readers to continue ordering their copies of these books, the publisher notes that some orders may go unfulfilled if stock sells out faster than expected.
Digital titles, on the other hand, will remain available on various platforms until 11:59 p.m. (JST) on Sept. 30. Fortunately, readers who have already purchased digital copies of the affected titles will be able to maintain those books in their personal digital libraries across any given platform, even after digital distribution for those titles has ended.
The news may come as a major shock to fans, especially those of Shueisha’s various Marvel-inspired manga titles. Like Marvel, Shueisha is a veritable titan of its industry — one that is currently in the midst of celebrating its 100th anniversary. Notably, Shueisha has not explained why it is ending the agreement as of writing. While licensing arrangements naturally expire and are renegotiated, it currently remains unclear why the company has chosen to end the partnership.
Thankfully, Marvel fans can still look forward to seeing manga-inspired versions of their favorite characters even after Shueisha’s partnership with the company comes to an end, courtesy of the impending return of the Marvel Mangaverse. In mid-June, Marvel Comics confirmed that the much-maligned and hotly debated Mangaverse will be making its return with five new one-shots this September.
The upcoming slate of new Mangaverse titles begins on Sept. 2 with the release of Marvel Mangaverse: Web of Blood by writers Josh and Jack Kelly and artist Kenny Ruiz, which will bookend the Mangaverse comeback with Marvel Mangaverse: Web of Destiny by the same creative team, set to be released on Sept. 30.
The other books in the line include Marvel Mangaverse: Iron Knight #1 by writer Cody Ziglar and artist Kei Zama, Marvel Mangaverse: Arcane Avengers #1 by writer Ashley Allen and artist Mirka Andolfo, and Marvel Mangaverse: Ghostlocke #1 by writer Alyssa Wong and artist Michael Yg, which arrives on Sept. 23.
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