Ikumi Hasegawa Joins Kill Blue's Cast As Mermaid Queen Mai Otohime

Celebrate This New Addition to the Classroom with a Slice-of-Life Visual!

LOS ANGELES, June 13, 2026 — DMM.com today revealed that voice actress Ikumi Hasegawa will take on the role of the Mermaid Queen Mai Otohime in KILL BLUE! Already famed for its roster of quirky characters, KILL BLUE adds one of its most colorful members yet in Mai Otohime, a marine-sports master with two completely different sides. Both a shy, petite princess and a bold gyaru princess, Mai Otohime is sure to bring even greater hijinks as this multi-faceted character enters the mix!

Speaking to her new role, Ikumi Hasegawa shared how she tried to connect with the character and prepare for the part:

“She's a marine sports prodigy. I grew up in a landlocked prefecture and have never tried marine sports myself, but earlier this year I felt strangely drawn to go see the ocean by myself one day. Maybe Otohime was calling out to me… or maybe I was just exhausted.

Otohime is a girl with two different sides to her: "Chibi-hime" and "Gyaru-hime." It was so much fun getting to play two completely different personalities!

Please look forward to seeing how Otohime gets tangled up with Juzo and the others!”

This casting announcement also comes with a new slice-of-life visual that captures a lively scene in the Home Economics Club! Here, Juzo prepares a stack of towering pancakes with Noren, while Kotatsu Nekota looks on in surprise. The scene quickly descends into KILL BLUE's celebrated absurdity, though, as the visual also features Tenma Tendo carrying a flustered Home Economics Club president Chisato Shiraishi as she shows off some elegant soccer-ball juggling, as well as Shin Kohazame poking out of the ceiling while sucking on his trademark pacifier. This vibrant visual perfectly captures the energy audiences can expect from KILL BLUE in its upcoming finale and what Anime Expo attendees can expect from the "Shonen Jump anime 'KILL BLUE' - Special Homeroom -" panel in the Platinum Ballroom at the JW Marriott L.A. Live on Friday, July 3 at 12:00 pm PT!

Praised for its blend of action and comedy, this "second chance at youth" series was one of the standout debuts of the Spring season thanks to its wide availability and high-concept premise. Adapted from the Weekly Shonen Jump manga, KILL BLUE is available in North America on Netflix, Crunchyroll, Prime Video, Rakuten Viki, Plex, the It's Anime FAST Channel (Samsung TV Plus, Vizio WatchFree+), and It's Anime YouTube. With the series in its final stretch, now is the time to catch up before Fujimaki takes the stage.

For more on KILL BLUE, visit kill-blue.us and follow @killblue_en on X and @killblue_official on TikTok.

Series Information

SERIES SYNOPSIS

A legendary assassin at 39. Starting over… as a middle schooler.

Juzo Ogami is a legendary hitman who has never failed an assignment, no matter how impossible. One day, after wiping out a powerful organization, he is stung by a mysterious wasp and collapses. When he wakes up, the fearsome 39-year-old assassin has been transformed into a 13-year-old boy! Before he can even process what happened, his boss delivers a new order: “In that body, infiltrate a middle school.” What awaits him is an unexpected school life filled with colorful classmates, youthful chaos, and looming danger. Can Juzo ever return to his original form? Or will the assassins closing in on him end his second life before it even begins?

Animation Production: CUE

Voice Cast:
Juzo Ogami: Yūko Sanpei (JP) / Caitlin Elizabeth (EN)
Noren Mitsuoka: Fūka Izumi (JP) / Kayli Mills (EN)
Kotatsu Nekota: Shūichirō Umeda (JP) / Khoi Dao (EN)
Shin Kohazame: Daisuke Sakuma (JP) / Brian Timothy Anderson (EN)
Tenma Tendo: Takeo Ōtsuka (JP) / Clifford Chapin (EN)
Chisato Shiraishi: Atsumi Tanezaki (JP) / Kira Buckland (EN)
Eri Wanibuchi: Yumi Uchiyama (JP) / Dawn M. Bennett (EN)
Juzo Ogami (Adult): Shunsuke Takeuchi (JP) / Ray Chase (EN)
Kazuma Rindou: Shōya Chiba (JP)
Eiji Rindou: Yoshiki Nakajima (JP)
Mai Otohime: Ikumi Hasegawa (JP)

Opening Theme: “ATTITUDE” by aespa
Download and stream here: https://aespa.lnk.to/ATTDPu
Ending Theme: “KILL SHOT” by RIIZE

Production Team:
Animation Supervisor / Series Composition: Hiro Kaburagi
Animation Director: Yasunori Ide
Character Design: Miho Daidōji
Art Director: Taketo Gonpei
Color Design: Shiho Suzuki/Yoshinori Horikawa
Director of Photography: Shinya Matsui
Editing: Daisuke Imai
Music: Ryō Konishi
Sound Director: Shōji Hata

MANGA INFORMATION

Title: KILL BLUE

Original Story: Tadatoshi Fujimaki (SHUEISHA / Jump Comics)
Volumes: The first seven volumes are available in the US (volume seven released June 9, 2026), with volume eight available August 11, 2026.

OFFICIAL LINKS
Official Website: kill-blue.us
Official X (English): @killblue_en
Official X (Japanese): @KILLBLUE_PR
Official TikTok: @killblue_official

Streaming Platforms:

North America
Prime Video, Netflix, Crunchyroll, Rakuten Viki, Plex,
It's Anime FAST Channel (Samsung TV Plus, Vizio WatchFree+), It's Anime YouTube

Latin America
Prime Video, Netflix, Crunchyroll, Plex, Rakuten Viki (Mexico & Brazil), It's Anime YouTube

Europe
Netflix, Crunchyroll, Prime Video (Except Russia, German-speaking Europe & Italian-speaking Europe), Rakuten Viki (UK & France), ADN (Except UK & Ireland), Aniverse (German-speaking Europe), Plex, It's Anime YouTube (Except Russia, German-speaking Europe & Italian-speaking Europe)

MENA
Netflix, Crunchyroll, Prime Video, Plex, It's Anime YouTube

CIS
Crunchyroll, IVI

Oceania
Netflix, Crunchyroll, Prime Video, Rakuten Viki(Australia, New Zealand, Guam), Plex, It's Anime YouTube

Asia
Netflix, Crunchyroll, Prime Video(Except South Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Macau), Plex(Except North Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Macau)
bilibili, TRUE iD (Thailand)
It's Anime YouTube(Except China, South Korea, Taiwan,Hong Kong, Macau)
Bahamut, ChungHwa Telecom MOD & Hami Video, LiTV & ofiii,Line TV, My-Video, Catchplay, friDay（Taiwan）

More streaming platforms will be added as they become available!

COPYRIGHT INFORMATION
©Tadatoshi Fujimaki/SHUEISHA, Kill Blue Production Committee.