We are thrilled to announce the 20 best upcoming Netflix animated movies. This list represents the most promising new animated films coming to Netflix and highlights the creative potential of animation as an art form.
The selected titles showcase various animation techniques, from traditional to stop-motion animation. Heartwarming friendships, thrilling adventures, deep dramas that tug at your soul – even ambitious sci-fi thrills. The animation proves it’s not just for kids.
Each title takes you to another world. Fantasy, history, everyday life – these movies use animation to reveal new perspectives and fuel the imagination. No matter the setting, you’ll find heart, humor, and that special ‘oomph’ that only animation can provide.
So, let’s discuss our list of 20 upcoming best anime movies on Netflix. Fasten your seat belts because it will be a fun ride.
Top 10 best upcoming animated movies on Netflix – Quick list
Although we have several of the best upcoming titles, here are the top 10 best upcoming movies worth watching:
- Nimona: In this movie, a young shapeshifter joins a supervillain and starts working together to stop many important activities.
- The Monkey King: The movie description says that the monkey king decided and set off on a mission to get the stolen staff back from the Dargon King.
- I, Chihuahua: The movie is about a little energetic fighter who wears a unique wrestling mask and wants to become the best fighter.
- Pashmina: The film is about an Asian-American girl who belongs to India. She finds a magical pashmina, which helps her rediscover her heritage.
- Sulwe: It is about a little girl with the darkest skin tone in her family. Initially, she wanted a lighter skin tone, but after a magical u-turn in her life, she started loving her skin tone.
- That Christmas: The film is about different Christmas stories investigating family, love, loneliness, and fellowship themes, with a funny bend, including Santa Claus and a huge turkey disaster.
- The Family Treehorn: It is about a boy whose height becomes short daily because of playing a specific board.
- The Sea Beast 2: The movie is about a monster hunter who founds a beast in the sea.
- The Witch Boy: It is about a mystical world where boys turn into shapeshifters and girls into witches. A boy was born, but he had the abilities of a witch. He kept it a secret but later disclosed it.
- Wallace & Gromit: This film will hit the big screens after a long time. It is about the Gromit, who worries about Wallace and thinks he depends on his inventions.
Best upcoming animated movies on Netflix – Detail list
We curate a list of the best upcoming animated movies. A few of the movies from the below list will launch in 2024 and beyond.
1. Nimona
| Director | Production | Expected date | Lead cast | Genre |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nick Bruno, Troy Quane | Annapurna Pictures | Summer 2023 | Chloe Grace Moretz, Eugene Lee Yang, Riz Ahmad | Anime, Fantasy, Fiction |
This film is based on a novel called ND Stevenson. The film is about a young, naughty shapeshifter who joins a supervillain, Lord Ballister Blackheart. They started working together and stopped many activities, including the Institution of Law Enforcement, Sir Ambrosius Goldenloin, and Heroics.
2. The Monkey King
| Director | Production | Expected date | Lead cast | Genre |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Anthony Stacchi | Pearl Studio, Netflix Animation | Soon in 2023 | BD Wong, Jimmy O. Yang, Ron Yuan, Stephanie Hsu, Hoon Lee | Anime, Action, Adventure, Comedy |
This movie is about a Monkey king who sets off on a mission to take back the staff stolen by Dragon King. His enemy is so powerful, but he still wants to return it.
3. I, Chihuahua
| Director | Production | Expected date | Lead cast | Genre |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jorge R. Gutierrez | Netflix Animation | 2023 | Gabriel Iglesias | Anime, Action, Comedy |
This anime film revolves around a young Chacho who dons a wrestling mask to become a renowned fighter. Jorge R. Gutierrez directed this film. He is a famous Netflix director who directs mini-series.
4. Pashmina
| Director | Production | Expected date | Lead cast | Genre |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gurinder Chadha | Hyde Park Entertainment, Blend It Films | September 2023 | Unknown | Anime, Fantasy, Adventure, Comedy |
Pashmina is among the most awaited films. The storyline of this animated musical film spins around a young Indian-American girl who sets out on time travel to reconnect with her underlying foundations using a magical pashmina. She can rediscover her cultural identity and heritage through the power of the captivated pashmina.
5. Sulwe
| Director | Production | Expected date | Lead cast | Genre |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Unknown | Netflix Animation | To be announced | Unknown | Anime, Fantasy, Comedy |
This animated film follows the story of a children’s book by Lupita Nyong’o. The expected story from this movie is about a girl named Sulwe who has the darkest skin among her family and classmates. She wishes to have a lighter complexion but eventually learns to appreciate her beautiful dark skin after a supernatural encounter.
6. That Christmas
| Director | Production | Expected date | Lead cast | Genre |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Simon Otto | Locksmith Animation | Soon in 2023 | Rachel Freck | Anime, Comedy, Family |
This animated feature film follows the story of a children’s book by Richar Curtis. The film revolves around Christmas. It is about different Christmas stories investigating the themes of family, love, loneliness, and fellowship, with a funny bend, including Santa Claus and a huge turkey disaster.
7. The Family Treehorn
| Director | Production | Expected date | Lead cast | Genre |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ron Howard | Animal Logic | November 2023 | Mezi Atwood, Taylor | Anime, Adventure, Comedy |
This film is also known as The Shrinking Of Treehorn. The film follows the story of a novel by Florence Perry Heide. It is the first anime film of Ron Howard’s, featuring a gripping storyline about a young man who finds himself gradually shrinking in size. This problem happened after he played an uncommon board game, which unfortunately went unnoticed by his parents.
8. The Sea Beast 2
| Director | Production | Expected date | Lead cast | Genre |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chris Williams | Netflix Animation | 2025 | Karl Urban, Zaris-Angel Hator, Jared Harris | Anime, Adventure, Comedy, Family |
The film is the second part of one of the most popular movies on Netflix. The film is about a monster hunter who founds a beast in the sea and uses different techniques to kill them.
9. The Witch Boy
| Director | Production | Expected date | Lead cast | Genre |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Minkyu Lee | Vertigo Entertainment | To be announced | Conrad Woolfe | Anime, Adventure, Family |
The film follows the story of a graphic novel by Molly Know Ostertag. It is about a mystical world where boys become shapeshifters, and girls become witches. A boy was born, but he had the abilities of a witch. He kept it a secret but later disclosed it.
10. Wallace & Gromit
| Director | Production | Expected date | Lead cast | Genre |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nick Park, Merlin Crossingham | Aardman Animation | 2024 | Peter Salli, Ralph Fiennes, Helena Bonham, Peter Kay, Kayvan Novak | Anime, Adventure, Comedy |
The film Wallace & Gromit was first released in 1989. Since then, many series, feature films, and spin-offs have occurred.
This time, the movie is coming to hit the big screens. The BBC can distribute it to the UK, Netflix, and everywhere else.
The movie is about Gromit, who worries that his friend Wallace is relying too much on his gadgets. Things take a strange turn when Wallace’s latest invention, the “Smart Gnome,” gains a life of its own. Now, it’s up to Gromit to fight against evil forces and rescue his pal. If he fails, his friend will lose the motivation to invent new things.
11. Leo
| Director | Production | Expected date | Lead cast | Genre |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| David Wachtenheim, Robert Marianetti, Rober Smigel | STX Entertainment | November, 2023 | Jackie Sandler, Adam Sandler, Jason Alexander, Bill Burr, Sunny Sandler, Sadie Sandler, Cecily Strong, Rob Schneider | Anime, Sci-fi |
The film is about a 74-year-old lizard stuck in a classroom with his terrarium-mate turtle for over a decade.
12. Chicken Run 2: Dawn of Nugget
| Director | Production | Expected date | Lead cast | Genre |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sam Fell | Aardman Animation | November 2023 | Bella Ramsey, Thandiwe Newton, Zachary Levi | Anime, Adventure, Comedy |
This film is coming back to hit the big screens after 23 years. It is about a little girl Molly who Ginger and Rocky hatched. After her birth, they fell into another trouble. This time, the whole chicken kind tried together to break in for freedom.
13. Saving Bikini Bottom: The Sandy Cheeks Movie
| Director | Production | Expected date | Lead cast | Genre |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Liza Johnson | Nickelodeon | Soon in 2023 | Carolyn Lawrence, Bill Fagerbakke, Doug Lawrence, Mary Jo Catlett, Craig Robinson, Johnny Knoxville, Wanda Skyes, Tom Kenny, Rodger Bumpass, Clancy Brown, Jill Talley, Grey Griffin, Loretta Devine | Anime, Adventure, Comedy |
The story you can expect from this film is that someone has stolen bikini bottoms! Sandy Cheeks and SpongeBob watch in disbelief as an evil and mysterious corporation takes everyone’s favorite city from the sea.
Sandy and SpongeBob have found Sandy’s home state of Texas and are recruiting their family to join Patrick, Squidward, and Mister.
14. Escape From Hat
| Director | Production | Expected date | Lead cast | Genre |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mark Osborne | Netflix Animation | Soon in 2023 | Unknown | Anime, Comedy, Adventure |
The film is based on a novel by Brian Taylor and Adama Kline. Here’s what we can expect from this upcoming film.
Escape From Hat sheds light on the age-old enigmas of magic. In this enchanting tale, where black cats are perceived as villains and magic rabbits as heroes, harmony is disrupted when one such rabbit is trapped in a dangerous and obscure world.
Our brave protagonist musters up an unlikely crew of supporters and embarks on a daunting expedition to flee from the confines of a magician’s Hat and reunite with the human boy he holds dear to his heart.
15. High in Clouds
| Director | Production | Expected date | Lead cast | Genre |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Timothy Reckart | Netflix Animation, Gaumont Animation | Soon in 2023 | Journey Brown, Saintel | Anime, Adventure |
The film adapts the novel by Paul Macartney. This movie is all about a little squirrel who sets off on a journey to discover a haven for animals. In addition, the film promises to have fresh music composed by none other than a member of The Beatles!
16. Steps
| Director | Production | Expected date | Lead cast | Genre |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alyce Tzue | Netflix Animation | Soon in 2023 | Unknown | Anime, Fantasy, Music |
The storyline of this musical animated film is familiar to Cinderella’s story. The Prince rejects two stepsisters as marriage material, provoking them to embark on a fantastic journey. En route, they find that their concept of an ideal fantasy won’t line up with the real world.
17. The Goon
| Director | Production | Expected date | Lead cast | Genre |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Patrick Osborne | Blur Studio, Dark Horse Entertainment | To be announced | Clancy Brown, Paul Giamatti | Anime, Adventure, Action, Comedy |
This animated film is based on a comic. That comic has been under development for more than a decade. It started its journey as a Kickstarter but underwent many changes.
Netflix announced in the middle of 2022 that it would distribute this film. It means we will be able to watch this movie soon.
18. Ultraman
| Director | Production | Expected date | Lead cast | Genre |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Shannon Tindle, John Aoshima | Industrial Ligh & Magic, Netflix Animation, Tusuburaya Productions | Soon in 2023 | Unknown | Anime, Action, Fantasy |
This new anime movie is coming soon. It focuses on a much-loved Japanese superhero and follows the story of a superstar baseball player who returns to Japan to continue the legacy of Ultraman.
Interestingly, the same creator who brought us Netflix’s Lost Ollie is behind this exciting new feature film.
19. Thelma the Unicorn
| Director | Production | Expected date | Lead cast | Genre |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jared Hess, Lynn Wang | Netflix Studios | To be announced | Unknown | Anime, Adventure, Comedy |
This film follows the story of an award-winning children’s novel by Aaron Blabey. Here’s the story you can expect from this film.
Thelma the Pony had always wished to become a unicorn, and one fine day, her wish came true in a rare, magical moment filled with pink and glitter. Instantly, she became a worldwide sensation and a pop superstar, but it came at a price she never expected.
Thelma the Unicorn is a heartwarming tale that teaches us to embrace ourselves for who we are, even if we don’t have sparkles.
20. Onyeka And The Academy of Sun
| Director | Production | Expected date | Lead cast | Genre |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Will Smith, David Oyelowo | Westbrook Studios | To be announced | Unknown | Anime, Adventure, Fantasy |
The expected storyline of this film follows a young girl who uncovers that she has some magical powers. She sets off on a trip to Nigeria to discover more about her ancestors and origin. There, she encounters a threat that puts her newfound community of magical individuals at risk.
Conclusion
This collection is a celebratory look at where animation is headed in the coming year and a testament to Netflix’s commitment to elevating animation as an art form for all ages. We could not be more excited to follow this journey with fans worldwide. The future of animation is bright, and these films will shine a light on new possibilities yet to come.
FAQs
A few of these anime films will probably come sooner on some Netflix versions. If a title isn’t available on your Netflix version after the release date and it’s available on other Netflix versions, then use a high-end VPN like ExpressVPN and connect your device to that version’s server. That’s how you can watch that title before it comes on your Netflix version.
There are many chances that these flicks will be available on Netflix worldwide, though their availability may differ depending on the location. Netflix typically drops its content all around the globe, but it’s never a bad call to double-check if a particular title is streaming on your country’s Netflix.
These upcoming movies are for members of every age group. The above list contains titles with family-friendly, adventure, love, fantasy, and comedy, which means it has a bit for everyone.
Most of the titles from the upcoming list will be released this year. However, sometimes, the production houses change the release date because of some issues.
