2026 is stacked with animated films from around the world, from high-concept sci-fi to nostalgic franchise returns. Here are ten releases to watch, sorted by date, and why each one might matter.
2026 is shaping up to be a huge year for animated films. If it’s the ill-fated number three (Star Trek fans will get the reference), hopefully the Angry Birds and Minions can weather the storm. But as for other works, there’s plenty to choose from. For some studios, they are finally taking the risk, but we still don’t have a date for one particular film that I’ll address at the end.
And I’m not limiting myself to works coming out of the Los Angeles area. Also, maybe those movies I’ve been reporting on as still not getting a North American release may see movement. I’m not holding my breath for it, but you never know! This year, this list reflects not just what’s coming, but why it matters.
Meikyū no Shiori
Release: January 1, 2026 (Japan)
Directed by Shōji Kawamori from a screenplay by Taichi Hashimoto, this high-concept science fiction drama treats smartphones as literal gateways to alternate realities. After Shiori Maezawa breaks her phone, she finds herself trapped inside an alternate Yokohama, a world where another version of herself already exists, and is making a mess of things. It’s a quietly unsettling premise that bends identity, technology, and isolation into something intimate and strange.
Charlie the Wonderdog
Release: January 16, 2026
When a boy’s best friend, who happens to be a cat, is abducted by aliens and returned profoundly altered, chaos follows. Charlie, the family dog, is suddenly forced into hero mode as the world tilts sideways around him. It’s goofy, loud, and oddly sincere, balancing superhero parody with the simple question of what loyalty actually looks like when everything changes. This is a movie that looks heavily inspired by Pixar, and yes, there are tacos.
Les Légendaires – Le Film
Release: January 28, 2026 (France)
Based on the popular French comic series, this fantasy adventure reunites the heroes of Alysia, once legendary warriors now trapped in the bodies of ten-year-olds after a magical catastrophe. When the sorcerer Darkhell threatens the world again through the mystical Gaméra tree, the group must come together, reputations in tatters, childhood awkwardness and all, to fix what they broke. As a beloved franchise that leans hard into classic European fantasy beats, what’s to lose?
Goat
Release: February 13, 2026
Sony Pictures Animation delivers an all-animal sports comedy set in the brutal world of roarball, a full-contact league dominated by the biggest and fastest creatures around. Will, a small goat with oversized ambition, earns a spot on a pro team and promptly disrupts everything. It’s a familiar underdog story, but the setting and kinetic animation style suggest it could be sharper than expected.
Doraemon: New Nobita and the Castle of the Undersea Devil
Release: February 27, 2026 (Japan)
The 22nd-century robot cat returns for the franchise’s 45th feature, reimagining one of Doraemon’s most beloved underwater adventures. When Nobita and friends set up camp on the ocean floor, they stumble into a hidden civilization and awaken the ominous Devil’s Rock Castle. Nostalgia meets modern animation tech in a story that leans heavily on friendship, curiosity, and the terror of things stirring beneath the waves.
Hoppers
Release: March 6, 2026
Pixar finally swings for something truly offbeat. Scientists develop technology that allows humans to “hop” their minds into robotic animals, and a nature-loving teenager uses it to protect a threatened habitat by becoming a mechanical beaver. It’s strange, playful, and philosophical in that very Pixar way, even if comparisons to horror games will inevitably sneak into the discourse.
The Super Mario Galaxy Movie
Release: April 3, 2026
Inspired by the Galaxy games, Mario, Luigi, and company head into space to face Bowser Jr. among the stars. Bright, energetic, and unapologetically colourful, this sequel expands the Mushroom Kingdom in every direction at once. Whether or not it dodges franchise fatigue, it’s hard not to be curious about how far Nintendo is willing to let this universe stretch.
Coyote vs. Acme
Release: August 28, 2026
Rescued from limbo by Ketchup Entertainment, this long-delayed Looney Tunes project finally sees the light of day. Wile E. Coyote sues Acme Corporation over decades of catastrophic product failures, resulting in a legal comedy built on slapstick logic and deep self-awareness. It’s an oddball entry in a crowded year, and one of the few mainstream animated films willing to get genuinely satirical.
Forgotten Island
Release: September 25, 2026
DreamWorks explores Filipino folklore in a story about memory, friendship, and identity. When two youths are stranded on the mysterious island of Nakali, they discover that returning home may require sacrificing the very memories that bind them together. Early materials suggest something quieter and more emotionally driven than the studio’s usual output, with real potential to surprise.
The Legend of Aang: The Last Airbender
Release: October 9, 2026
Set between The Last Airbender and The Legend of Korra, this long-gestating animated feature finally gives Aang his own post-series story. With a new global threat looming, the now more experienced Team Avatar must step back into action. After multiple delays and shifting release plans, there’s hope this one finally lands, and lands well.
The throughline here isn’t nostalgia or spectacle alone, it’s ambition. As for where Studio Laika’s Wildwood is, that’s because there’s no official distributor yet. Analysts are saying it will have to release soon. And when studios are clearly willing to experiment again, for this fan, all I can say is that it’s about bloody time!
While looking for the latest word about when Ne Zha 2 will hit home video, and the next film, Ne Zha 3 will release, there are rumours suggesting it could arrive as early as this year. These expectations are far too optimistic. While the 2026 Chinese animation production schedule shows what’s being developed, not everything will be ready to screen until the following year, or much later.
Release Date: Jan 16, 2026
At the end of December, the season can feel less like a celebration and more like a rat race through consumer culture and obligation. When that happens, I like to suggest something radical in its simplicity: slow down. With this Studio Ghibli holiday guide, I’m sharing what I fallback to when looking for a way to make a full stop, destress and treat the break as it’s originally intended.
Nine years is a long gap between films, and whether that much time was truly needed to bring Zootopia 2 to theatres is debatable. I suspect Disney pushed for a release rather than waiting for genuine creative inspiration. Even so, what arrives on screen is a handsome continuation, expanding its world-building while revisiting familiar ideas of segregation within a society of animals that prides itself on being “civilized.” Fear continues to simmer beneath the surface, particularly around questions of supremacy and who ultimately becomes the victim.