This article contains spoilers from the Solo Leveling franchise.
Solo Leveling is one of the biggest anime franchises at the moment in the whole world. Over the last two years, it has established its dominance over the vast majority of new releases, and done incredibly well at that. It goes without saying that Solo Leveling is absolutely brilliant at what it does best, and it is a series that fans will always look forward to every single year. Solo Leveling Season 2 wrapped up in early 2025, and since then, fans have been waiting for a continuation of the series.
It Might Be Time To Say Goodbye To Solo Leveling Season 3, And Welcome Something Even Better
Solo Leveling season 3 isn't coming, and fans can look forward to this series instead.
Unfortunately, Solo Leveling Season 3 hasn't received many updates so far. In fact, based on everything else that has been revealed about the franchise last year, it can be said with confidence that Solo Leveling Season 3 is not happening anytime soon, and that it might never actually happen. Scary as that might sound, the franchise might just have better plans in store for all the fans.
Solo Leveling Season 3 Is Indefinitely Delayed For Now
- No Solo Leveling Season 3 Updates in 2025
- New Details Point Towards Bigger Plans From The Studio
Solo Leveling Season 3 was supposed to come out in 2026. The first season of Solo Leveling dropped in early 2024 and Season 2 dropped less than a year later, in early 2025. Naturally, most fans expected Solo Leveling Season 3 to drop in early 2026. However, when the second season of the show ended, there was no announcement about a successive season. This left all the fans perplexed, and since then, there has been no word on what the Solo Leveling franchise plans to do in the future. In fact, Solo Leveling Season 3 has not even been confirmed, so fans don't even know if they will ever get this season or not.
As a Japanese person living in Japan, the anime is not at the level of Dragon Ball, One Piece, or Naruto. But if season three happens, that's when I want to truly break that boundary. — Solo Leveling Producer
All that aside, one thing that can be said with absolute certainty is that Solo Leveling will continue in one way or another. The franchise is too big and popular for it to suddenly just die and never return. The only question that remains is how the story will continue from here onwards.
It can be safely said that Solo Leveling Season 3 is not going to return anytime soon. Given that there has been no announcement so far about it, Solo Leveling will most likely not return this year at all, as far as Season 3 goes. But, that doesn't mean that the franchise can't have other plans. A production report from A1 Pictures seemed to have been leaked and it suggested a very intriguing plan for fans to look forward to in late 2026.
A-1 Pictures Plans Seem To Indicate A Movie Release Next
- Solo Leveling Plans To Mimic Demon Slayer
- A Solo Leveling Theatrical Release Would Shake The World
If the production report from A1 Pictures is to be believed, then fans would be delighted to know that the next step for Solo Leveling is not Season 3 at all. Instead, they seem to be focusing on a new movie project that could come out at some point in 2026. While the key details about the project are not known just yet, what can clearly be said is that Solo Leveling Season 3 is not on the agenda at the moment. It seems that the plan is to continue the story with a canon adaptation after the second season in the form of a movie. In other words, Solo Leveling has taken inspiration from Demon Slayer and started doing canon movies.
Of course, it was also stated that the movie is in the pre-production phase, which means that a lot of things could still change. For instance, according to the report, the Solo Leveling movie was slated for a late 2026 release date. This makes sense, given that nothing about the movie has been made public yet and it would take at least close to a year to complete its production. In other words, the Solo Leveling movie might release at some point around December 2026.
That said, it must also be remembered that the movie is only in the pre-production phase at the moment, which means that it could easily be pushed back to 2027 as well. In either case, what can be said with certainty is that the next step for the franchise is not Season 3, but a movie instead.
Solo Leveling Could Continue As Movies If The Upcoming Film Is A Success
Coming over to Solo Leveling Season 3, most fans assume that after the movie, this franchise will go back to dropping the third season and conclude the story properly. The fact is that Solo Leveling Season 3 hinges greatly on the success of the potential movie that will drop either this year, or next year. If the next Solo Leveling movie performs well, then it is easily possible that the franchise will only continue in the form of movies. Demon Slayer is doing something similar with its last arc, so Solo Leveling could simply follow suit as well. After all, movies do drive in more revenue and would also do well to push out the franchise on a global scale.
On the other hand, if the success of the Solo Leveling movie isn't all that great, then perhaps Season 3 would still be on the agenda.
Solo Leveling Season 3 Could Kill The Anime Forever
Solo Leveling season 3 has yet to even be confirmed. The long wait could kill the hype.
But, it is important that fans keep in mind the idea that Solo Leveling Season 3 might never happen. If Solo Leveling is incredibly successful as a movie, then there is absolutely no reason for them to go back to doing canon anime seasons anymore. This is especially true when taking into consideration the fact that there isn't much of the story left now, and two movies would be enough to cover the rest of the plot.
Solo Leveling Movies Would Generate A Mixed Reaction
It goes without saying that fans would love a Solo Leveling movie. After all, it would deliver high-level action and quality even superior to anything that the anime seasons have delivered so far. On the flip side, it would mean that fans would lose out on the week-to-week experience and the exciting discussions that used to take place after the conclusion of each episode. It takes away from and shrinks the community in many ways, and that would be sorely missed.
In that way, a Solo Leveling movie would generate mixed reactions among all fans. It would most certainly deliver fans the best version of any Solo Leveling arc ever, but the community would greatly suffer, especially because the movie will be released across the world at different times.
In either case, there is little fans can do about it. There are plenty of positives to take from a Solo Leveling movie, and even if Season 3 doesn't happen, fans can still be grateful, because it seems that in either case, the future of the franchise is safe.
Solo Leveling has two seasons out right now, one with 12 episodes, and the other with 13, for a combined episode count of 25 episodes available to watch right now. The series can be streamed on Crunchyroll for fans to enjoy while awaiting any more news concerning the third season. There have been no major announcements about a third season so far. Fans can get more Solo Leveling content via the Manhwa.