Jujutsu Kaisen was going to have another protagonist

In a recent exhibition dedicated to Gege Akutami and his work "Jujutsu Kaisen", the author revealed a curious fact about the creation of the popular series: Megumi Fushiguro was initially conceived as the protagonist in a first draft of the story. During a Q&A session shown at the show, Akutami explained that the series was originally titled "Sousen" and Fushiguro, who was then called Megumi Wanibuchi, was going to be the main character.

In the first concept, Fushiguro was a 16-year-old who, after graduating from high school, decided to go straight to work instead of attending university. She made this decision so that she could spend more time at home with her sister Tsumiki, who was blind and ill. However, this first draft failed to secure serialization, leading Akutami to reconsider and restructure the story to better fit the audience of a shonen magazine.

• "Scholarships and so on... Given your intellect, you could easily be admitted through a recommendation."
• "I pass. I don't like debt. In addition, I will help a company that I know from the spring."
• "However, it is difficult at the time of emergencies if there is no educational background. How to say it... I think you should aim higher."
• "I'm not interested. I want to be home for longer from now on."

Akutami observed that Fushiguro's character was somewhat hardened, while Yuji Itadori, the current protagonist of "Jujutsu Kaisen," possessed a softer personality that was easier for readers to identify. This led Akutami to switch roles, making Itadori the main protagonist and relegating Fushiguro to a supporting role.

In the Q&A session, Akutami explained:

• "When Sousen wasn't chosen at the serialization meeting, I decided to start over and create something that would really fit a children's magazine. As a character, Fushiguro is quite hardened, but Itadori is able to react to things in a softer way, so I swapped the two."

This change turned out to be a wise decision, as "Jujutsu Kaisen" has become a global phenomenon, attracting millions of fans with its combination of action, supernatural elements, and deeply developed characters. Akutami's reveal adds an extra layer of understanding about the creative process behind the series and how small decisions can have a big impact on the success of a work.

Source: @f9x00 en Twitter