The wait for JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Steel Ball Run is finally entering its next chapter. After opening the anime with an unusual 47-minute STAGE 1 episode in March, Netflix is preparing to bring Johnny Joestar and Gyro Zeppeli back to the screen with a regular weekly release schedule.
This time, the journey heads into a far more dangerous stretch of the legendary race, where an approximately 750-mile desert crossing and the mysterious “Devil’s Palm” await. But before Johnny and Gyro can figure out what is happening around them, several major new characters are about to enter the race.
When does JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Steel Ball Run return on Netflix?
Netflix has confirmed that the 2nd and 3rd STAGES of Steel Ball Run begin streaming on September 25, 2026, with new episodes arriving every Friday.
The upcoming run contains 11 episodes in total, marking a major change from the anime’s opening release. Rather than another standalone special, fans will now have a consistent weekly schedule for the next section of Johnny and Gyro’s cross-country adventure.
Netflix lists the worldwide release at 1 a.m. PDT / 5 p.m. JST on September 25, although exact local availability can vary by region.
The official JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure portal has also confirmed the schedule:
“Streaming every Friday starting September 25 from the 2nd & 3rd STAGE – 11 episodes in total.”
That means JoJo Fridays are officially back.
| Official detail | Information |
| Anime | JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Steel Ball Run |
| Returning stages | 2nd and 3rd STAGES |
| Premiere date | September 25, 2026 |
| Release schedule | New episode every Friday |
| Total episodes | 11 |
| Worldwide listed time | 1 a.m. PDT / 5 p.m. JST |
| Previous release | 1st STAGE, one 47-minute episode |
| 1st STAGE premiere | March 19, 2026 |
| Upcoming setting | Approximately 750-mile desert crossing |
| Major location | “Devil’s Palm” |
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Steel Ball Run’s unusual 47-minute beginning
The road to the September return started much earlier in the year.
The first STAGE of the anime premiered worldwide on Netflix on March 19, 2026, but it did not follow the standard weekly anime format. Instead, fans received a single 47-minute special-format episode.
The official announcement had already revealed that structure before the premiere:
“March 19, 2026. 1st STAGE（1 episode: 47 mins）Premieres Only on Netflix!”
That opening episode established the foundations of the Steel Ball Run race while introducing the two characters at the center of the journey: Johnny Joestar and Gyro Zeppeli.
Netflix currently lists the 47-minute 1st STAGE as available to watch. The next chapter begins on September 25, when the 2nd and 3rd STAGES start their weekly run.
The difference in rollout is significant for viewers who have been waiting since March. The first release introduced the world and its central partnership. The next 11 episodes now push that story much further into the race.
Johnny Joestar and Gyro Zeppeli face the Devil’s Palm
Set in 1890 America, Steel Ball Run follows Johnny Joestar, a former genius jockey who lost the use of his legs after a freak accident.
Johnny becomes interested in the mysterious Gyro Zeppeli and eventually forms an alliance with the outlaw. Together, they enter the enormous Steel Ball Run horseback race.
The official series introduction describes the competition as a race covering approximately 4,000 miles across North America, with a huge $50 million prize.
Johnny and Gyro each have their own reasons for participating, but the race is about to become something much more complicated than a contest between riders.
The upcoming 2nd STAGE centers on an approximately 750-mile desert crossing. Somewhere within that harsh landscape is the mysterious and feared region known as the “Devil’s Palm.”
The official synopsis warns that ominous incidents begin occurring during the crossing. As Johnny and Gyro encounter these strange events, they are forced to understand that the Steel Ball Run is not simply a competition.
That shift is one of the major reasons the September episodes are so important. The race remains at the heart of the story, but survival, mystery and supernatural conflict increasingly become part of the journey.
More Anime News: New arcs bringing fresh visuals and higher stakes is a theme across this season’s biggest returns. Our story on YAIBA: Samurai Legend Season 2 setting a January 2027 premiere with the Kaguya arc and a new main visual covers another highly anticipated comeback.
Three major Steel Ball Run characters arrive
The newest trailer also gives fans a closer look at three important characters who are joining the story.
The official announcement confirms:
- Mountain Tim, voiced by Tomoaki Maeno
- Hot Pants, voiced by Yoko Hikasa
- Funny Valentine, voiced by Tomokazu Sugita
Their character visuals were revealed alongside the second trailer.
For viewers who have only experienced the anime so far, these characters represent another major expansion of the cast surrounding Johnny and Gyro. Netflix’s latest synopsis specifically highlights their arrival as the protagonists travel deeper into the race.
For manga readers, the reveals are particularly significant because the Steel Ball Run story grows considerably more complicated once the race moves beyond its opening stages.
The anime is now entering that part of the journey.
The Steel Ball Run race is becoming something much bigger
The massive horse race has never been presented as an ordinary competition, but the upcoming episodes push that idea much further.
Johnny and Gyro enter the race with their own personal objectives. As they move across the desert, however, mysterious incidents begin happening around them.
The official synopsis makes the change in scale clear, stating that the pair are forced to realize:
“this race is far more than a mere competition.”
That development gives the 2nd STAGE a very different atmosphere. The desert is not simply another section of the route. It becomes the setting for a stretch of the story where Johnny and Gyro have to deal with threats they cannot simply outrun on horseback.
At the center of that danger is the Devil’s Palm, a feared location within the approximately 750-mile desert crossing.
The race itself stretches approximately 4,000 miles across North America, but this particular section turns the journey into something much more uncertain.
What the new Steel Ball Run trailer reveals
The latest trailer serves as both a continuation of the story and an introduction to what comes next.
It focuses on Johnny and Gyro’s next stage of the journey while showing the new characters entering the race. The official JoJo portal released the second trailer together with the new character visuals, making the update one of the most substantial promotional developments since the anime’s March debut.
The trailer also emphasizes the harsh conditions facing the protagonists as they approach the desert.
That contrast is central to Steel Ball Run. The American landscape provides the enormous backdrop for the race, but the same environment can also hide unexpected threats.
The Devil’s Palm stands out in particular because the official synopsis treats it as a feared and mysterious location within the desert crossing rather than simply another stop along the route.
With 11 episodes covering the 2nd and 3rd STAGES, there is now considerably more room for the anime to explore this next section of Johnny and Gyro’s journey.
Anime Expo 2026 revealed the next chapter
Fans received one of the biggest updates about the continuation during Anime Expo 2026.
According to the official JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure portal’s report from the event, the second trailer was shown during the special panel, alongside details about the upcoming release schedule.
The announcement confirmed that the 2nd and 3rd STAGES would begin streaming on September 25, with episodes arriving every Friday.
The event was also accompanied by the message:
“JOJO FRIDAY IS BACK”
Anime Expo also revealed Mountain Tim and Funny Valentine, while Hot Pants’ character visual was unveiled as a surprise during the event.
The panel therefore gave fans something they had been waiting for since the March premiere: a concrete release plan for the continuation of Steel Ball Run.
The original production team returns
The anime continues under directors Yasuhiro Kimura and Hideya Takahashi, with the same production team responsible for the previous JoJo anime installments.
Kimura has also shared his enthusiasm about adapting the seventh manga part, saying:
“My heart is pounding with excitement to be entrusted with directing this anime adaptation. The entire staff shares this feeling and is pouring their passion into daily production. I look forward to sharing our enthusiasm for this work with all of you, and hope we can ride this journey together.”
His comments reflect the production team’s approach to adapting Hirohiko Araki’s seventh manga part, which introduces a substantially different setting and cast of characters from the previous JoJo storylines.
The return of the same directing team also connects the upcoming episodes to the production behind the anime’s first STAGE.
Steel Ball Run still has a long journey ahead
September’s return is not the conclusion of the Steel Ball Run anime. It is another major step into the larger story.
The manga’s enormous race is divided into nine STAGES, and the upcoming anime material covers the 2nd and 3rd STAGES.
That means Johnny and Gyro are still relatively early in their journey, even though the story is already moving into a much more dangerous section.
For now, their immediate challenge is the desert.
They must make it through an approximately 750-mile crossing, while facing the mystery surrounding the Devil’s Palm, encountering new competitors and dealing with increasingly suspicious events surrounding the race.
The 1st STAGE established Johnny and Gyro’s partnership. The next 11 episodes will place that partnership under considerably greater pressure.
When do new Steel Ball Run episodes release?
JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Steel Ball Run 2nd and 3rd STAGES begin streaming on Netflix on September 25, 2026.
A new episode will arrive every Friday, with 11 episodes in total across the two stages. The original 1st STAGE remains available on Netflix as its 47-minute opening episode.
The September return also marks the point where the anime’s unusual opening format gives way to a regular weekly schedule.
With Johnny Joestar and Gyro Zeppeli heading into the desert, the Steel Ball Run is entering a stretch filled with new characters, mysterious incidents and one of the race’s most feared locations.
The next destination is clear: the Devil’s Palm is waiting.
More Anime News: Fresh teasers giving fans a first look after major behind-the-scenes shifts are keeping the anime calendar busy right now. For more, check out our story on “Alya Sometimes Hides Her Feelings in Russian” Season 2 getting a new 2027 teaser after major production changes.
Conclusion
JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Steel Ball Run is set to return on September 25, 2026, bringing the 2nd and 3rd STAGES to Netflix with 11 new episodes released weekly every Friday. After the 47-minute 1st STAGE introduced Johnny Joestar, Gyro Zeppeli and the massive 4,000-mile race, the story now moves into an approximately 750-mile desert crossing centered around the mysterious Devil’s Palm.
With Mountain Tim, Hot Pants and Funny Valentine joining the cast, and the returning production team continuing the adaptation, the next chapter is set to take Johnny and Gyro considerably deeper into the strange dangers surrounding the Steel Ball Run.
Source Disclaimer: This article has been prepared based on thorough research of the sources provided, including official Netflix Tudum materials, the Netflix Media Center, the official Netflix series page, and the JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure Official Portal and its related news, anime, introduction and Anime Expo 2026 materials. The article reflects the information available from those provided sources and does not imply independent verification beyond the material they support.
Sources
- Netflix Tudum — Steel Ball Run 2nd & 3rd STAGE release details
- Netflix Tudum — Steel Ball Run new characters and story details
- JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure Official Portal — Steel Ball Run anime
- Netflix Media Center — Steel Ball Run official series information
- Netflix — Steel Ball Run official series page
- JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure Official Portal — Steel Ball Run introduction and story details
Featured Image Credit:
Netflix
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