"It's a story about a teacher": Mai Fuchigami & Nobuhiko Okamoto talk the enduring appeal of Assassination Classroom for adults

Assassination Classroom (written by Yusei Matsui) is a popular manga that concluded its run in Weekly Shonen Jump in 2016, with the TV anime adaptation ending around the same time. The story begins when a super-creature named Koro-sensei suddenly becomes a homeroom teacher, and the students of Kunugigaoka Junior High Class 3-E are tasked with assassinating him before graduation.

The roles of "assassin" and "target," alongside the bond between "student" and "teacher," are explored through various episodes over the course of a single year. "Assassination Classroom the Movie : Our Time," which opened nationwide on Friday, March 20, 2026, animates original manga stories not seen in the TV series, framed as memories shared just 15 days before the assassination deadline.

Produced as a brand-new project to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the manga's conclusion and the anime's finale, this film allows viewers to reunite with Koro-sensei and the students of Class 3-E exactly as they were. By revisiting the world of Assassination Classroom after a decade, long-time fans can enjoy a sense of nostalgia while discovering something entirely new.

In this article, we interviewed Mai Fuchigami (voice of Nagisa Shiota) and Nobuhiko Okamoto (voice of Karma Akabane). We spoke with them about the series' appeal, directed toward both longtime fans and those discovering Assassination Classroom for the first time through this movie.

— I feel that "Assassination Classroom the Movie : Our Time" is a work where you can discover something new whether you’re an adult revisiting it after 10 years or seeing it for the first time. If you had to highlight the appeal of Assassination Classroom again, what would it be?

Fuchigami: I think Assassination Classroom is very straightforward and easy to understand, both in its story and its individual characters. Even the "bad guys" are clearly defined. Koro-sensei helps resolve each student's complexes and struggles, making it a series you can watch or read with a sense of security and enjoyment. I’ve felt that charm ever since I read the original manga before my audition.

— As people get older, they often find it more of a chore to keep up with anime or manga.

Fuchigami: I think it’s an easy, relatable, and impactful work even for people who don’t usually read manga.

Okamoto: In Assassination Classroom, Koro-sensei is explicitly depicted as a wonderful teacher. There were moments while working on this series where I caught myself thinking, "I wish I had a teacher like this," so I feel like I’m reliving the experience alongside everyone in Class 3-E.