You’ve seen the memes, the bright colors of the 2012 anime, and maybe even the weird PS2 game. But there’s a massive hole in the history of JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure. A literal 90-minute void.
On February 17, 2007, a full-length animated movie titled JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Phantom Blood hit Japanese theaters. Produced by Studio A.P.P.P.—the same crew behind the 90s Stardust Crusaders OVAs—this was supposed to be the big 20th-anniversary celebration of Hirohiko Araki’s work.
Instead? It vanished.
Seriously. It’s not on Netflix. It’s not on some obscure Japanese streaming site. You can’t even find a grainy DVD rip on a pirate site. Aside from a 16-minute silent compilation of clips and a couple of trailers, the jjba phantom blood movie is the Holy Grail of anime lost media.
The Weird Reality of the 2007 Film
Imagine watching Phantom Blood without Robert E. O. Speedwagon.
That’s not a hypothetical. In this movie, the best jobro in the series was basically deleted. He appears for a split second on Ogre Street to get kicked in the face, and then he’s gone. No commentary. No helping Jonathan. Nothing.
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The movie was barely 90 minutes long, which meant they had to butcher the story. They cut out the rugby match, Poco, Dire, and Straizo. The Ripple (Hamon) wasn't really explained; it was just a generic yellow glow that made Jonathan punch harder. Even the ending was different. In the manga, Erina saves a baby. In the movie? She just hops into the coffin alone.
It’s easy to see why fans who actually caught it in theaters weren't exactly thrilled.
Why Shueisha Locked It in a Vault
There is a massive rumor that Hirohiko Araki hated the movie so much he personally demanded it be buried. Honestly? There’s no hard proof of that. Araki is usually pretty chill about adaptations, even the weird ones.
The real reason for the disappearance is likely much more corporate and messy.
Around the time the jjba phantom blood movie was in theaters, a huge controversy erupted over the older Stardust Crusaders OVA. In one scene, Dio was seen reading from the Quran while planning a murder. This caused a massive international backlash. Studio A.P.P.P. and Shueisha had to issue public apologies, recall manga volumes, and halt production on anything JoJo related for a while.
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Junichi Hayama, the animation director, has since mentioned that Shueisha basically seized all the assets. They took the film reels, the art, the masters—everything.
What Actually Survives Today?
If you go looking for it right now, you’ll find bits and pieces, but it’s a tease.
- The 2004 Pilot: A three-minute teaser found on a DVD-RW that looks way different (and arguably better) than the final movie.
- The Voodoo Kingdom Trailer: A high-energy trailer set to SOUL’d OUT’s "VOODOO KINGDOM."
- The 16-Minute Clip: A collection of footage without audio that surfaced because a composer wanted to show off the soundtrack.
It’s bizarre. We have the music. We have the character designs. We just don't have the movie.
Is There Any Hope for a Re-release?
Usually, with lost media, you hope for a warehouse find or a former employee with a rogue VHS. But Japan has some of the strictest copyright laws on the planet. Anyone leaking a full copy of a Shueisha-owned film would be nuking their career and inviting a massive lawsuit.
Plus, we now have the David Production anime from 2012. It’s faithful, it has Speedwagon, and the music is iconic. From a business perspective, why would Shueisha release a "failed" version of a story that already has a "perfect" version available?
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Basically, the 2007 movie is a ghost.
If you want to experience the closest thing to the movie's vibe, check out the Phantom Blood PS2 game. It was released around the same time and used the same voice actors. It’s clunky, but it’s a tangible piece of that specific era of JoJo history.
For the film itself? Don’t hold your breath. Unless a private collector decides to risk it all, those reels are staying in a dark vault in Tokyo.
Next Steps for the Curious Fan:
- Search for the Voodoo Kingdom music video on YouTube to see the specific art style used in the movie.
- Check the Lost Media Wiki periodically, as the community is still hunting for the full audio tracks.
- Avoid "full movie" links on sketchy sites; they are almost always the 2012 anime or malware.