The third chapter of the completely new theatrical film trilogy "Mononoke: The Movie," based on the popular TV anime "Mononoke," titled "Mononoke : The Movie Chapter 3 - Serpent God," was released on May 29th. The "Mononoke: The Movie" trilogy, which began with the first chapter "Karakasa" released in July 2024 and the second chapter "Hinezumi" released in March 2025, finally concludes with the third chapter "Serpent God." The third chapter features a shocking development in the last 10 minutes that will surprise even fans. We spoke to Kenji Nakamura, the general director who has been working on "Mononoke" since the TV anime, about the production process.
◇The following contains spoilers.
In "Mononoke: The Movie," the Medicine Seller pursues the true identity of the Mononoke in the Ōoku, a place swirling with the passions of women. In the first chapter, he faced the umbrella monster, and in the second chapter, the fire rat, both powerful Mononoke. In the third chapter, however, he is pushed into an unprecedented predicament by a snake god born from the deep passions of the third wife of the Ōoku, which were involved in the establishment of the Ōoku 150 years ago. After a fierce battle, he defeats the snake god, but yet another Mononoke, stands in his way. In a surprising turn of events, the Medicine Seller of Ri, the protagonist of the TV series, appears as a helper in this desperate situation. It was revealed when the first chapter was released that there are 64 Medicine Sellers, but this time, the Medicine Seller of Kon, the protagonist of the movie with special powers, and the Medicine Seller of Ri from the TV series fight together.
The decision to include the medicine seller from the separation was made during the production of the third chapter.
"The script for Chapter Three had been finalized once, but as we progressed with the storyboards, a problem arose: 'I don't think the power of Kun's medicine seller alone is enough to defeat the Hundred Eyes.' We proceeded with the fight up to the Serpent God, but we spent a considerable amount of time figuring out how to handle the fight against the Hundred Eyes. That's when the producer came up with the idea, 'What if there were multiple medicine sellers?' and I thought, 'That works!' So we discussed how many medicine sellers would be needed to defeat the Hundred Eyes, and we decided to introduce two medicine sellers, Kun and Li. Afterwards, I asked Hiroshi Kamiya, who plays Kun's medicine seller, 'I'm thinking of calling in Li's medicine seller. What do you think as Kun's medicine seller?' He responded with 'That sounds good,' and we made it happen."
Director Nakamura himself said that this was the first time he had depicted the medicine seller Ri since the TV series, and he revealed the difference, saying, "I felt that Kun and Ri have different demeanors. Ri has a slightly more veteran-like air about him." He also said that he put a lot of effort into the scene where the two medicine sellers transform into their battle forms, the divine rituals.
The collaboration between the Medicine Sellers, realized in the final chapter of "Mononoke: The Movie," is something you'll want to enjoy on the big screen. (Shiroinu/MANTANWEB)
