Tom Cruise wanted to know how anime gets made. During a stop in Tokyo to promote DIGGER, Cruise and director Alejandro G. Iñárritu toured MAPPA EXPO 15th Anniversary — the exhibition celebrating 15 years of studio MAPPA — asking questions about the intricacies of anime production as JUJUTSU KAISEN character designer Tadashi Hiramatsu walked them past displays for Chainsaw Man, Attack on Titan, and JUJUTSU KAISEN.
MAPPA released the full tour on its official YouTube channel on October 14, a 13-minute video following the pair through the exhibition at the Yurakucho Museum in Tokyo. The visit itself took place days earlier, with the expo's official account announcing on October 9 that the footage would be released soon.
Watch the tour video here:
The exhibition's first half is built around three of the studio's defining titles: Chainsaw Man – The Movie: Reze Arc, Attack on Titan, and JUJUTSU KAISEN. Its first half runs through October 25 before the displays rotate — the exhibition reopens on October 28 with new exhibits and continues until December 7.
The exhibition opened on September 16 and traces the studio's rise through its flagship titles. Since its founding in 2011, MAPPA has produced JUJUTSU KAISEN, Chainsaw Man, the final season of Attack on Titan, Yuri!!! on ICE, and Zombie Land Saga, among others — a catalogue that turned the studio into one of the most in-demand names in anime. Hiramatsu himself is part of that history, having designed the characters for both JUJUTSU KAISEN and Yuri!!! on ICE.
Inside, the tour plays out as a conversation between two industries. Iñárritu spent time gazing at the exhibition's "Bomb Girl" exhibit, devoted to Reze of Chainsaw Man. The three also sat down for a talk session spanning DIGGER and the craft of filmmaking and anime creation from each medium's perspective, finding the common ground between a Hollywood set and an anime studio floor.
Cruise plays the title role in DIGGER, Iñárritu's latest film, which is currently playing in Japanese theaters, and the pair's stop at the exhibition came as part of the film's promotional run in Japan. Before they left, Hiramatsu presented Cruise and Iñárritu with a gift: a special illustration of DIGGER drawn by MAPPA, created for the two guests of honor. The artwork reveals about as much about the film as its own trailer does — which is to say, the mystery around DIGGER survives the crossover intact.
Cruise and Iñárritu's visit lands as the studio celebrates the milestone in the middle of a crowded fall season, with the Reze Arc film anchoring the anniversary year — and with two of Hollywood's biggest names now among the exhibition's visitors.
Source: MAPPA on YouTube
