The trailer’s unique art style ignites controversy and exposes a growing divide between animation purists and casual viewers.
The internet is going crazy over the new trailer for the planned anime version of Sekiro. Not only does it have a unique animation style, but some people think it may have been generated by AI. It seemed like there were a lot of rumors going around, and Twitter (or X) was full of them. It turned out that none of it was true, though.
Sekiro’s anime project, directed by the famous animator Kenji Katuna, looked promising from the start. Many people know Katuna for his expressive and unique work. He became famous during the early “webgen” era of Japanese animation, which stressed digital tools and creative freedom. Still, when the clip came out, a lot of people were more interested in whether the frames were “too weird” to be made by humans than in Katuna’s skill.
The internet thinks the worst when something doesn’t look right.
What people said online showed how casual viewers understand animation. Many people thought Sekiro’s rough, sketchy graphics were unfinished. People quickly said that the shaky lines and simple coloring were “AI-generated,” while others said that the company was cutting corners. What’s the joke? These rough, flowing flaws are what make Katuna’s art unique; they are not the result of computer help.
Along with Shingo Yamashita and Ryot Timo, Katuna is part of a generation that changed the way animation looks today. They went beyond the usual studio styles to make something honest and emotional, which is bound to divide people. Katuna has mostly worked as a key animator, but he has also directed the shorts for Vlad Love, Magical Girl Destroyers, and Hikari no Ou.
His unique style, which is influenced by energy and minimalism, puts mood ahead of detail. This way of thinking continues in Sekiro. Katuna doesn’t try to copy the glossy, overly detailed visuals of companies like Ufotable. Instead, they go for simplicity, using rough lines, muted colors, and flaws on purpose. What they came up with is a visual language that questions what “anime” should look like, which is why some watchers were confused.
Normie fans don’t want art to breathe; they want art panels to move.
The reaction shows a bigger split in anime fans. A lot of casual watchers think that high-quality animation means hyperrealism, and they like how shows like Demon Slayer and Jujutsu Kaisen are so accurate to real life.
Fans said it was “lazy” when JJK’s second season tried animation that was less detailed and more emotional. The same thing is happening again with Sekiro. The animation isn’t bad; it’s just that its artistic goal runs counter to what most people expect. Then the AI claims came out.
Two Twitter accounts —one unidentified and the other belonging to a well-known fan promoter —said Sekiro’s animation was aided by AI. One shot that seemed to show a person with six fingers was all they had as “evidence.” People started to think that Sekiro’s studio, Qzilla, was quietly testing AI after the post went viral.
But this was false information in every way. Later, Qzilla explained that Sekiro is entirely drawn by hand, and the frame in question was just a mistake made while drawing something else. It was a result of motion animation, not a mistake made by a machine.
When asked about the dispute, animator Evoko said that the extra “finger” was actually a line that showed a knuckle. They also said that these kinds of mistakes happen a lot when frames are captured while motion is still in progress.
This was drawn by people, not AI.
The fact that Qzilla was not well-known added to people’s doubts. Before Sekiro, the studio’s most famous works were the eleventh ending for Chainsaw Man and a music video for Oku. Their website, which talks about using AI tools in some experiments, made things even less clear. Many fans didn’t do any study because they thought that reference also applied to Sekiro.
In reality, the project’s artistic core is not in Qzilla. Some of Katuna’s partners are freelancers, like art directors, compositors, and designers, whom he knows personally. Many of the studio’s duties involve logistics. Yohi Ai, one of its animation directors, previously worked for MAPPA and helped with a few smaller projects before joining this one.
This set-up is familiar in anime production, where people from different studios work together and use freelance talent groups. Behind the scenes, Sekiro has been in development for years, which goes against the idea of a quick, AI-driven production.
A 2024 document leaked even suggested that the company didn’t have any internal resources and had to use Katuna’s network to assemble the creative team. Sekiro is not a trial with AI; instead, it shows how an animator can have an idea and get skilled artists to work on it.
AI will keep anime alive, but at a lower cost.
The debate also brings up the question of AI’s place in the animation business again. Some see it as a quick way to cut costs and production time, but others say it could make artistic work less valuable. The person who made the text was very clear when they said that replacing artists with algorithms doesn’t end “human slavery,” it just ends “clanker slavery.”
AI tools can be helpful, but they can’t copy the subtlety of human creativity—at least, not without first taking it. A lot of people have already said bad things about projects like W Studios’ AI-assisted backgrounds and Hinahima, a cartoon made 95% by AI. They’re meant to be warnings about what can happen when production efficiency is prioritized over beauty.
On the other hand, Sekiro is the exact opposite: a love project led by people that is wrongly accused of the very thing it stands against. Fans who are willing to look past the noise can find something unique from Sekiro: a creative, hand-crafted version that doesn’t mind breaking the rules of good design. Katuna’s past work shows that new ideas often lead to confusion.
Still, it’s that same bravery that keeps animation alive, changing, and indeed human. In the end, Sekiro’s trouble may have more to do with how anime fans act than with the anime itself. People like to be angry online, and sometimes, unique art is misunderstood as an error.
One thing is clear, though: Kenji Katuna’s Sekiro isn’t an experiment with AI; it’s a statement about the power of being unique in a medium that is becoming more and more alike. If you’re still interested, the show’s creator suggests reading Sar’s blog, which goes into more depth about the cast and how the show was made. Whether you like her or not, Sekiro makes you think, which is maybe just what anime needs right now.
