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In what has turned in the last years as the most-watched Wednesday Annecy showcase, Netflix today revealed new details of its upcoming animation slate for 2026 and beyond, fresh off the Annecy Bonlieu theater stage
where a wave of guests enchanted animation fans from all over the world.
Headlining this presentation, two-time Academy Award winner Brad Bird took the stage for an in-depth conversation with fellow Academy Award winning director, Aardman co-founder and recently Knighted Peter Lord, revealing new images and never-before-seen clips from his upcoming feature ‘Ray Gunn,’ set for a Dec. 18 release later this year.
As he explained in previous announcements, “Ray Gunn” has been percolating in the director’s mind for more than 30 years. Sitting in a Hollywood vault for several decades, Bird finally got hold of the project again a few years back. “Despite the many transformations in animation technology and the film industry at large, the fundamental concept still was dear to me,” explained Bird. A urban, futuristic sci-fi noir adventure inspired by genre pieces and Bird’s love for “Chinatown,” which he dubbed ‘the greatest detective movie of all time,’ Bird dove deeper into crafting the film, sharing laughs and his love for the animated medium with both Lord and Annecy’s captivated audience.
Beyond original stories long in the making, Netflix also shared a first teaser of its flagship anime project, “The One Piece,” set for global release in February 2027. Produced by WIT Studio, this brand new anime adaptation goes back to the very beginning of the original manga’s East Blue saga, separating itself from the TV anime series that has charged full speed ahead over the course of more than 25 years. “The One Piece” instead taps into the expressive potential of modern technology to offer a familiar yet fresh take on the early adventures of Luffy, with “Attack on Titan” director Masashi Koizuka helming the show at WIT Studio.
Netflix used Annecy to announce that Mayumi Tanaka will be the Japanese voice cast for series hero Luffy.
“As we first sat down with the project, we knew that the story was emotional and inspiring. But we wanted to go into it as a naval action-adventure story. It’s a story of a boy wanting to be King of the Pirates, so we figured that was the most appropriate place to start,” Masashi Koizuka, director of ‘The One Piece,’ has commented. “That means the ocean waters need to be awe-inspiring. The oceans as Luffy sees them are literally uncharted waters full of surprises and excitement. We wanted to bring that awe and scale to life,” he added.
Another legacy and beloved IP makes its way to the Netflix animation 2027 slate with “Ghostbusters: Night Shift” Sony Pictures Animation teams taking the stage to reveal first look and concept arts of their upcoming young adult animation series set between the original films and the Afterlife sequels. Set five years after the Ghostbusters took the Statue of Liberty for a walk, young, scrappy New Yorkers face a new wave of supernatural terror hitting the Big Apple. Untrained, underappreciated and kinda sorta responsible for the problem, it’s time for them to put on proton packs, face their fears, and bust some ghosts.
Jason Reitman and Gil Kenan took the stage as executive producers, introducing showrunners’ duo Ben Hibbon and Elliott Kalan. Amie Karp and Dan Aykroyd also are joining the project as executive producers.
Ahead of Thursday’s masterclass at Annecy, Netflix Ricky Gervais shared new images of his upcoming adult comedy series “Alley Cats,” set for a August 7 release.
New images for “Steps,” slated for a Nov. 20 global now, were presented by John Ripa and Alyce Tzuein the wake of their delightful work-in-progress session, following a focus on Cannes’ Netflix picked-up title “In Waves,” which will release globally on Netflix (excluding France) on Dec. 11.
Netflix has become a go-to destination for animation in all its forms, with more than 130 million members around the world watching a variety of animated titles every month. Anime fandom continues to grow at Netflix as well, where anime programming topped more than 1.5 billion views in 2025. Earlier this week, Netflix unveiled its anime slate in a separate exclusive showcase.
Today’s announcements follow an unprecedented year for Netflix Animation, with the triumphant “KPop Demon Hunters” taking home a historical two Academy Awards while becoming Netflix’s most popular film of all time, spending over a year in Netflix’s Global Top 10. Topping this achievement, Netflix productions gathered 13 Annie Award wins including three for “Love, Death + Robots,” with “Ultraman: Rising” nabbing the Children and Family Emmy for outstanding animated special and sound mixing & sound editing for an animated program.
