With the author planning to wrap up the novels soon, we can expect an announcement
It’s been nearly two years since the third season of Overlord aired. Since no announcement regarding the series’s continuation was announced, fans have started questioning if it can even happen.
Light novel status
Overlord is based on the light novels of the same name written by Kugane Maruyama and illustrated by so-bin. So far, 14 volumes have been released, and a manga series have been based off it as well, with 13 published volumes. The last volume of the light novel was released on March 12, 2020, with the author publishing one in 2017, one in 2018, and zero in 2019. The author has shared that he will be wrapping up the story with the 17th volume.
When it comes to the anime, each season was comprised of 3 light novel volumes. That means season 4 will be picking up from volume 10. If they plan to follow the same trend of three volumes per season, then a total of two seasons will be needed.
Another factor that determines whether the anime gets renewed will be the sales and profit. Overlord has already made three seasons, so you can understand that it makes money. But the problem that animes usually face is that each season usually makes less money. It’s common for a sequel to lose around 15-25% profit. This was what had happened with Noragami and why we never got a third season. The drop in Blu-Ray sales is significant in Overlord‘s case, meaning people aren’t buying them like they did in 2015. But what’s promising is that the novel and video game title Mass of the Dead have been doing well, so all this can ensure that a fourth season will be made.
(Cover: Madhouse)