{"rewrite":{"id":"r_2ec57a8f6c427964054f2b4a","clusterId":"c_0ffd897986e425745eed1d1f","slug":"jaadugar-a-witch-in-mongolia-adds-kujira-as-empress-boraqchin","model":"deepseek-v4-flash:free","headline":"Jaadugar: A Witch in Mongolia Adds Kujira as Empress Boraqchin","summary":"The staff for the television anime Jaadugar: A Witch in Mongolia announced on Sunday that veteran voice actress Kujira will play Boraqchin, Ögedei's first wife and Empress. The announcement came with the release of the anime's third promotional video and a new special visual. Kujira, who said she had been reading the original manga as a fan, described Boraqchin as calm, composed, and deeply strategic, a character who believes in pulling strings beneath the surface in politics. The anime, based on Tomato Soup's manga A Witch's Life in Mongol, is produced by Science SARU, with Naoko Yamada as chief director and Abel Góngora as director. It premiered on July 4 in the IMAnimation W block on TV Asahi and affiliated channels, with the first two episodes airing as a one-hour special. Crunchyroll streams the series as it airs, and began streaming an English dub on July 18. The anime was screened in competition at the Annecy International Animation Film Festival in the TV Films category, and the manga recently won the grand prize in the Comic division of the 55th Japan Cartoonists Association Awards.","whyItMatters":"Kujira's casting as Boraqchin adds a veteran performer to a historical drama that has already drawn international attention at Annecy, and her personal fandom of the source material suggests a deeper alignment with the manga's portrayal of the character.","webCardHtml":"\u003cp\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003cul\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003eKujira said she was surprised by the casting, having followed the manga as a fan before the offer. \u0026#34;I\u0026#39;ve always loved history, and I\u0026#39;d already been reading the original manga as a fan. So I never imagined I\u0026#39;d be cast in the anime, especially in this role.\u0026#34;\u003c/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003eThe third promotional video and special visual were released alongside the announcement on Sunday.\u003c/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003eKenichi Yoshida (Eureka Seven, Gundam: Reconguista in G) designs the characters and serves as animation chief, with Kanichi Katō (Black Clover, The Eminence in Shadow) overseeing series scripts and Kōshirō Hino composing the music.\u003c/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003eSEKAI NO OWARI performs the opening theme \u0026#34;Stella,\u0026#34; and Queen Bee performs the ending theme \u0026#34;Hoshi\u0026#34; (Star).\u003c/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003eThe anime had its world premiere screening of the first three episodes on June 13 at United Cinemas Aqua City Odaiba, and Anime Expo hosted the U.S. premiere on July 3.\u003c/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003eThe manga began serialization on Akita Shoten\u0026#39;s Souffle website in September 2021, and its sixth compiled volume shipped on July 15. It went on hiatus for Tomato Soup\u0026#39;s maternity leave and returned on March 25.\u003c/li\u003e\n  \u003cli\u003eThe manga topped the Kono Manga ga Sugoi! 2023 rankings for female readers, ranked #11 in the 2024 rankings, and was nominated for the Manga Taisho Awards in both 2023 and 2024.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003c/ul\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c/p\u003e","blueskyPost":"Kujira joins Jaadugar: A Witch in Mongolia as Empress Boraqchin, a role she says fits her love of the manga. The casting pairs a veteran voice with a character defined by quiet political maneuvering, not action.","twitterPost":"Kujira voices Empress Boraqchin in Jaadugar: A Witch in Mongolia, a character who pulls strings rather than fights. A strategic match for a veteran actress.","threadsPost":"Kujira's casting as Boraqchin in Jaadugar: A Witch in Mongolia leans on her strengths: the empress is calm and strategic, preferring subtle political influence over overt force. The role lets her play a figure whose power is invisible, a contrast to the show's action-heavy setting.","newsletterBlurb":"Jaadugar: A Witch in Mongolia has revealed its third trailer, a new visual, and the casting of Kujira as Empress Boraqchin. The historical anime, produced by Science SARU, premiered in July and is streaming on Crunchyroll.","attributionJson":"[{\"source\":\"Anime News Network\",\"url\":\"https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2026-08-01/jaadugar-a-witch-in-mongolia-anime-new-video-unveils-cast-member-kujira/.240174\",\"title\":\"Jaadugar: A Witch in Mongolia Anime's New Video Unveils Cast Member Kujira\"},{\"source\":\"Anime Corner\",\"url\":\"https://animecorner.me/jaadugar-a-witch-in-mongolia-reveals-new-trailer-visual-and-kujira-as-first-empress-boraqchin/\",\"title\":\"Jaadugar: A Witch in Mongolia Reveals New Trailer, Visual, and Kujira as First Empress Boraqchin\"}]","lintFlagsJson":null,"lintHits":0,"costUsd":0,"inputTokens":12016,"outputTokens":1513,"status":"published","repairAttempts":0,"nextRepairAt":null,"factsAttemptedAt":1785842966,"createdAt":"2026-08-04T11:14:36.000Z","publishedAt":"2026-08-04T11:27:24.000Z","updatedAt":"2026-08-04T11:14:36.000Z"},"cluster":{"id":"c_0ffd897986e425745eed1d1f","canonicalTitle":"Jaadugar: A Witch in Mongolia Reveals New Trailer, Visual, and Kujira as First Empress Boraqchin","representativeArticleId":"a_f79c4f62d0e236ccd9254035","sourceCount":2,"writtenSourceCount":2,"writeAttempts":1,"isSolo":false,"entitiesJson":"{\"anime_titles\":[\"Jaadugar: A Witch in Mongolia\"],\"manga_titles\":[],\"work_titles\":[],\"studios\":[],\"people\":[\"Kujira\"],\"type\":\"announcement\",\"domain\":\"anime\",\"is_roundup\":false}","contentType":"news","status":"published","firstSeenAt":"2026-08-01T15:22:19.000Z","lastSeenAt":"2026-08-01T16:23:50.000Z","updatedAt":"2026-08-04T11:27:24.000Z"},"attribution":[{"source":"Anime News Network","url":"https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2026-08-01/jaadugar-a-witch-in-mongolia-anime-new-video-unveils-cast-member-kujira/.240174","title":"News\nJaadugar: A Witch in Mongolia Anime's New Video Unveils Cast Member Kujira"},{"source":"Anime Corner","url":"https://animecorner.me/jaadugar-a-witch-in-mongolia-reveals-new-trailer-visual-and-kujira-as-first-empress-boraqchin/","title":"Jaadugar: A Witch in Mongolia Reveals New Trailer, Visual, and Kujira as First Empress Boraqchin"}],"entities":{"anime_titles":["Jaadugar: A Witch in Mongolia"],"manga_titles":[],"work_titles":[],"studios":[],"people":["Kujira"],"type":"announcement","domain":"anime","is_roundup":false},"keyFacts":["Kujira voices Boraqchin, Ögedei's first wife and Empress, in Jaadugar: A Witch in Mongolia.","The anime premiered on July 4 at 11:00 p.m. JST on TV Asahi and 23 affiliated channels, with the first two episodes airing as a one-hour special.","Crunchyroll streams the anime as it airs and began streaming the English dub on July 18.","The anime was screened in competition at the Annecy International Animation Film Festival in the TV Films category.","The source manga, A Witch's Life in Mongol, recently won the grand prize in the Comic division of the 55th Japan Cartoonists Association Awards."]}