After months of near-silence following the March debut of Episode 1, Netflix has confirmed that JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Steel Ball Run 2nd Stage will begin streaming on 25 September 2026. New episodes drop every Friday, reviving the beloved “JoJo Fridays” schedule that fans last enjoyed during Golden Wind.
JoJo Fridays Are Back — 11 New Episodes from 25 September
The 2nd Stage and 3rd Stage together cover 11 new episodes, picking up where the first episode left off. The story moves into the “Across the Arizona Desert” arc (manga chapters 12–27), where the race across North America shifts from pure horse riding into something far more dangerous: Stand battles. The vast desert terrain, searing heat, and waves of hostile competitors make this the arc where Steel Ball Run stops feeling like a sports anime and starts feeling like the JoJo you know.
The announcement was made at the Steel Ball Run panel at Anime Expo 2026 in Los Angeles on 3 July, where composer Yugo Kanno and English dub voice actors Daman Mills (Gyro) and Kaiji Tang (Johnny) joined producers on stage to debut the new trailer.
New Cast Revealed — Mountain Tim, Hot Pants, and the President Himself
Three characters who define the 2nd Stage were officially cast at the panel:
- Tomoaki Maeno as Mountain Tim — the laconic Texas Ranger with a Stand that turns his own body into rope. Maeno is widely known in Singapore for voicing Zhongli in Genshin Impact, and his measured delivery is a perfect fit for Tim’s calm menace.
- Yoko Hikasa as Hot Pants — the mysterious priest whose Stand manipulates flesh. Hikasa is a veteran of countless leading roles across two decades of anime.
- Tomokazu Sugita as Funny Valentine — arguably the casting of the year. Sugita, already beloved in Singapore for Gintoki in Gintama and Joseph Joestar, now takes on the quietly terrifying President of the United States. Valentine is widely considered one of manga’s greatest antagonists, and Sugita’s gravity suits him perfectly.
Watch the Official Trailer
What to Expect from the Arizona Desert Arc
For anyone who hasn’t touched the manga yet: the 2nd Stage is the point where Steel Ball Run reveals its full ambition. The race format stays — Johnny and Gyro are still chasing the prize money across North America — but other competitors now have Stands, the supernatural abilities central to every JoJo part. The Devil’s Palm stretches across the desert: a region where the land itself seems to conspire against the racers, and where each competitor’s true motivation starts coming into focus.
The Mountain Tim close-up in the trailer suggests David Production is giving him the same visual care they brought to Golden Wind’s standout characters. Funny Valentine’s introduction is still a few episodes out, but his casting alone is reason enough to lock in 25 September on your calendar.
Netflix Singapore: Stage 1 Is Already On — Stage 2 Should Follow
Stage 1 (Episode 1) of Steel Ball Run launched on Netflix Singapore in March 2026 as part of Netflix’s worldwide early distribution for the series. Based on that precedent, Singapore Netflix subscribers should be able to stream Stage 2 weekly from 25 September — though Netflix has not yet issued a region-by-region availability list, so confirm in the Netflix app once the date arrives.
If you’ve been holding off on Steel Ball Run until the release schedule sorted itself out, now is a good time to catch up on Episode 1. For more anime hitting Singapore streaming services this season, see our Manga & Anime coverage.