Bleach Animation Director Leo Kawamoto Reveals That He Has Been Fired From Bleach Production

Animator Leo Kawamoto, who worked as the animation director on the first three seasons of Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War, revealed that he has been fired from the production and that it "will be difficult for him to take part" in the fourth season's production on his official profile on Twitter/X.

Kawamoto stated that he would provide more details at a later time, but shared that the decision was sudden. Fans from all over the world have been replying to his announcement, praising his work. Kawamoto himself highlighted 35th episode (episode 9 of Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War: Part III - The Conflict) as one of the most memorable.

In addition to being an animation director for the new Bleach anime installments, Kawamoto also did key animation and worked on the opening sequences. The first season of the Thousand-Year Blood War anime premiered in 2022, and was followed by sequels in 2023 and 2024. Studio Pierrot animated all of them and is also doing the upcoming sequel.

Kawamoto started his animation career in early 2010s. Some of his first credits include Monogatari Series Second Season and Nisekoi. Over the years, he has been involved in productions such as Erased, Saga of Tanya the Evil, No Game No Life, and Sakura Quest, mainly as a key animator. His first animation director credit came in 2015, on the Hybrid x Heart Magias Academy Ataraxia anime.

Featured image: Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War © TITE KUBO / SHUEISHA, TV TOKYO, dentsu, Pierrot