What is the Sword Art Online Progressive 3 release date? Sword Art Online is one of the most beloved anime series of all time. And now, with the release of the Sword Art Online Progressive movies, fans get a chance to experience an expanded retelling of the Aincrad arc – seeing Asuna and Kirito like never before.
Based on Reki Kawahara’s light novels, the first Sword Art Online Progressive movie hit the big screen in 2021 — Sword Art Online Progressive: Aria of a Starless Night. The anime movie threw us back into the deadly virtual world with Asuna and Kirito forced to work together to defeat the Sword Art Online (SAO) game. A follow-up animated movie Sword Art Online Progressive: Scherzo of Deep Night was released in 2022, but ended with a cliffhanger and our heroes still far off the top floor of Aincrad’s tower.
Fans are already dying to know what is next for Asuna and Kirito, and The Digital Fix is ready to shed some light on SAO’s future. From the Sword Art Online Progressive 3 release date, plot, cast and more — here is everything we know about Asuna and Kirito’s next outing.
Sword Art Online Progressive 3 release date speculation
Currently, there is no Sword Art Online Progressive 3 release date. And, to make matters more disheartening, a new movie hasn’t been announced yet either. But all hope isn’t lost just yet, friends!
While there is no current release date for a new Progressive movie, it should be noted that the light novels on which the fantasy movies are based still have a lot to cover. And while the second film Sword Art Online Progressive: Scherzo of Deep Night, wasn’t as successful as the first movie Sword Art Online Progressive: Aria of a Starless Night, it still impressed at Japan’s box office, topping the charts in its first weekend.
With this in mind, there is no reason to think that another Sword Art Online movie won’t be greenlit at some point in the future. Since there was a year gap between the release of Aria of a Starless Night and Scherzo of Deep Night, we are expecting to hear news of a new Sword Art Online movie sometime in 2023.
But since we are still waiting on confirmation that a Sword Art Online Progressive 3 movie is in development, a 2024 release date is our best bet. Stay tuned for updates!
Sword Art Online Progressive 3 plot speculation
We don’t have an official synopsis for the Sword Art Online Progressive 3 plot. Thanks to Scherzo of a Deep Night’s story skipping over the second and third Sword Art Online Progressive light novels, it can be tricky trying to piece together what events the future film will cover.
Scherzo of a Deep Night adapts volume four of the Sword Art Online Progressive light novels. This content skip from Aira of a Starless Night’s story was decided due to the fact that the Elf Quest storyline that begins in volume 2 is incomplete.
The Elf War is the first campaign quest in Sword Art Online Progressive – which starts on floor three and ends around floor nine. It involves the anime characters having to choose whether they side with forest elves or dark elves, their choices branch out into different quests.
Reki Kawahara has clarified that there are no intentions to skip over the Elf War and that it will be animated in due time. Our best bet is that the next movie in the Sword Art Online Progressive timeline will be tackling the campaign in some aspect.
In the Scherzo of a Deep Night ending, our heroes were on floor five, heading to floor six. So, Sword Art Online Progressive 3 will be set before the last movie in the series or involve some flashbacks to give context to the campaign.
Putting aside all this elf talk, the new movie’s plot may also tie into some conspiracies presented in the last adventure movie. In Scherzo of a Deep Night, we saw the introduction of a group of player killers, trying to cause havoc. The underground gang of killers seem a lot like the Laughing Coffin guild from the Sword Art Online anime series.
If Laughing Coffin is indeed back, the anime villains will likely make another appearance in the next adventure movie, trying to foil players and potentially engaging in some bloodshed too. Keep your eyes on this page as we update you on more details.
Sword Art Online Progressive 3 cast speculation
We are confident that Sword Art Online Progressive 3 will see our main heroes, Kirito and Asuna, return to the big screen. With that in mind, Yoshitsugu Matsuoka and Haruka Tomatsu will be back to voice the anime characters, respectively
Similarly, fans can expect to see Shiori Izawa as Argo and Inori Minase as Mito. We are also expecting to see a villain return. In Scherzo of a Deep Night, Kirito discussed the player Killer Morte, and if our hunch on Laughing Coffin being in the next film is correct, Yûsuke Kobayashi will be back to voice the character too.
Here is the expected Sword Art Online Progressive 3 cast list:
- Yoshitsugu Matsuoka as Kirito
- Haruka Tomatsu as Asuna
- Shiori Izawa as Argo
- Inori Minase as Mito
- Yûsuke Kobayashi as Morte
We expect that some new characters will be joining the fold in the next chapter, and of course, some old comrades and guild members from the Aincrad Liberation Squad and the Dragon Knights Brigade could turn up to. We’ll keep you posted as more news heads our way.
Where can I watch the Sword Art Online Progressive movies?
All the Sword Art Online Progressive movies will be heading to Crunchyroll at some point in the future. Currently, fans can watch the first Sword Art Online Progressive movie, Aria of a Starless Night, on the platform.
Sword Art Online Progressive: Scherzo of Deep Night is, at the time of writing, in a theatrical exclusive Western run. The film came out in UK cinemas on February 1st, 2023 and hit US theatres on February 3rd. For more information, you can check our guide on how to watch Sword Art Online Progressive: Scherzo of Deep Night.
For more on the new movie, read our Sword Art Online Progressive 2 review and find out if Sword Art Online Progressive: Scherzo of Deep Night is canon. Or, if you are after more action, here is everything we know about Demon Slayer season 3 and Spy x Family season 2.