Smile Down the Runway Season 2 Release Date: Renewed or Canceled?

Smile Down the Runway is a manga series written and drawn by Kotoba Inoya. The story follows the journey of a duo of teenagers realizing their biggest dream. The manga was published in Kōdansha’s Weekly Shōnen Magazine from May 31, 2017 to July 14, 2021. An adaptation into an animated television series aired between January 11 and March 28, 2020. The first season ended only recently and in this article, we are going to tell you whether you can expect the second season of Smile Down the Runway anytime soon.

The second season of Smile Down the Runway still hasn’t been confirmed or canceled yet. The first season ended only recently and with the fact that there is a lot of material left for adapting, the second season seems highly likely. Having said all of this, Smile Down the Runway was a popular series, and based on all the known facts, a second season is highly probable. We just don’t know when it could happen.

The rest of this article will bring you all the known and unknown information related to a potential season two of Smile Down the Runway. You’re going to find out about its potential release date, whether there is a trailer, what the story could be about, and much more about this intriguing anime series whose future is still very uncertain.

What do we know about Season 2 of Smile Down the Runway?

Smile Down the Runway, written and drawn by Kotoba Inoya, is was since the 26th issue of 2017 of the preprint shōnen manga magazine, the Weekly Shōnen Magazine, which appeared on May 31, 2017, until July 14, 2021. The chapters were collected and edited in the tankōbon format by Kōdansha with the first volume published in September 2019; the series has 22 tankōbon volumes in total.

In North America, the manga was published digitally by the publishing house Kodansha Comics since September 2019 under the title Smile Down the Runway.

In September 2019, an adaptation into an animated television series was announced for January 2020 with the opening of an official site. The anme was directed by Nobuyoshi Nagayama and written by Tōko Machida, with character designs by Misaki Kaneko; the animation was produced by the Ezo’la studio.

It aired in Japan between January 10 and March 28, 2020 in the Animeism time slot on TBS and MBSb, and later on BS-TBS. In North America, simulcasting was handled by Funimation, which is also planning an English dub of the series. The opening song for the series, titled “Lion”, was performed by Ami Sakaguchi, while the ending song, titled “Ray of Light”, was performed by Kim Jaejoong. What does all of this tell us about a potential second season?

As you can see, the future of the Smile Down the Runway anime is quite uncertain, but not because there’s no interest or lack of material. The series was fairly popular back in the day, and it’s been only a year since the first season, but the fact anime series usually run while there’s a need to promote the written materials complicates things a bit.

The original manga series ended only last year, which means that there is no need to promote anything else; but, since the anime ended only recently and the manga not long after that, this might not mean anything in the long run, since everything is still relatively fresh. All of this doesn’t completely exclude the possibility of another season, but the chances are somewhat slimmer so we’ll just have to see whether there is enough interest for a continuation to make any proper predictions about the potential continuation of the series. The first season received solid reviews, but we simply don’t know enough to make any predictions on the show’s future.

In any case, the earliest we could see a potential second season is late 2023, but we’d have to get some confirmation on the future during 2022 or easily 2023; 2024 is also a strong possibility. The fans are demanding a new season, but we’ll just have to see how it goes; as far as things stand now, a cancelation has not been confirmed, but we cannot rule it out either. It all depends on the future so we’ll just have to wait.

What could Season 2 of Smile Down the Runway be about?

At this moment, we do not know how far the second season of Smile Down the Runway could take us because we don’t know how many additional chapters of the original manga series the season could potentially adapt; it could be the whole series or just a part of it. Namely, due to a lack of information in general, we have absolutely no clue how far the second season might go if it even happens. What follows is an overview of the original material so you can get a rough idea of what you could expect from the series if it ever comes back in the future.

Chiyuki Fujito pursued her dream of becoming a supermodel. Eight years earlier, her growth spurt abruptly stopped, dropping her below the 175cm mark required for models. Despite this, she decides not to give up. In class, she meets Ikuto Tsumura, where she accidentally discovers her dream of becoming a fashion designer.

After telling Ikuto the impossibility of her dream, Chiyuki knocks herself out for discouraging someone and tries another agency. While being accepted, Chiyuki eventually decides to renew her original dream and turn to Ikuto to design clothes for her. Chiyuki reaffirms her convictions in front of the judges, including supermodel Shizuku Naruoka, who glimpses Paris through her aura and her look. Chiyuki is finally accepted, and she sheds tears of joy upon becoming a member of the agency, which has the same meaning as her name, as “Mille Niege” means “thousand snows” in French.

Chiyuki gets her picture taken on the street, and a supermodel named Seira posts her online, making her instantly famous. Ikuto is then accepted into the agency after Chiyuki’s father wanted to buy the design for his outfit. Chiyuki’s father rescinds Ikuto’s offer after realizing that he was not professionally trained.

Chiyuki later tries to goad him into proving her wrong, just like she did the many others who discouraged her, only for it to backfire, and he goes after her instead. Luckily, they reconcile, and Ikuto gets himself a new outfit to try Mille Niege again. Chiyuki’s father recognizes Ikuto’s potential, but instead of hiring him, he recommends Ikuto to the design studio of one of their former professional designers named Hazime Yanagida to gain experience first.

Although Yanagida is rude and selfish, Ikuto constantly inspires Chiyuki not to leave the studio and continually improve his work. The next day is the start of Tokyo Fashion Week and a pivotal moment for Yanagida as a top designer, but her latest model has to be replaced by Chiyuki instead because she couldn’t.

To make matters worse, Kumi Moriyama, her only seamstress, collapses from a nosebleed and exhaustion, prompting Ikuto to volunteer to have the dress fitted to Chiyuki’s waist. Ikuto eliminates pressure and the use of unfamiliar fabrics and needles. As Chiyuki picks him up to encourage him again, he realizes that she, too, is scared but still fighting for her own dream.

Minutes before Chiyuki is due out, Ikuto uses unconventional methods to assemble the dress and enlists the help of the other models to save time. The audience gets excited when they see a small model walking down the runway. Chiyuki risks further embarrassment by kneeling as the cobbler accidentally used a broken heel but is saved by Ikuto, who deliberately fails to tie the last thread of her cleavage.

The idea of Ikuto altering her dress without her notification makes her smile, though the models are usually taught never to fall or smile when they are on the runway. Regardless of this, it earns Chiyuki a standing ovation, and she ends perfectly, switching gears to head backstage. When the installer points out their shortcomings, the two decide to improve and come back here with their own brand.

Yanagida recognizes Ikuto’s potential and decides to train him. After a long night at Yanagida’s, Honoka, Ikuto’s hardworking older sister, mistakenly believes that he is back at work for the family. The guilt of needing to depend on her brother to give up her dream of chasing her own grades and lower grades causes her to lash out at him angrily.

They reconcile when Ikuto assures him that he is pursuing his own dream while getting paid for the family, and the two promise to work hard together. When Yanagida lands a spot in a department store for her brand, the high demand for dresses prompts her to find additional support from two members of Japan’s famous Geika fashion school: Toh Ayano, grandson of the great designer Mai Ayano and model-cum-mate -Designer newcomer Kokoro Hasegawa. Due to the dress’s unique material and cut, Ikuto struggles with it while Toh effortlessly performs it.