Predict Toonami in 2026

[Toonamiguy321]

With the December 20th schedule revealed to be a normal night, the only thing left for Toonami in 2025 is a marathon I guarantee no one cares about. So let’s look forward to 2026. 
 

For the first time in many years, we aren’t ending the year on a whimper with vast schedule gaps that need filled as soon as the calendar rolls over to January. In fact, we are solid for about a month and a half. Here are estimated end dates, accounting for a likely marathon the first Saturday of the year on Jan 3rd

Bleach S3 - March 14th

Blue Exorcist - February 7th

Mashle - February 7th

One Piece - never

Dan Da Dan - January 31st

Daima - April 4th

Naruto - on demand says it expires in May, I doubt they maintain the license. 
 

As we know Primal S3 reruns are likely going to shit up the schedule on 1/17, I’d bet Dan Da Dan either runs an episode on both marathon nights, or gets doubled up a few weeks to clear it off the schedule and open a slot. 
 

Let’s take stock of what we know is coming on the original side, and what accessible sequels they can grab. 
 

Originals

Primal S3 - confirmed premiers off Toonami, likely rerunning at midnight for the block on 1/17. 

Rooster Fighter - confirmed for spring 2026, likely going to slide right in around when Primal ends. 

Get Jiro! - Implied for a 2026 release but we don’t have many other details. 

My Adventures with Superman S3 and S4 - no date given, though these were announced mid 2024 so 2026 could be in the strike zone for at least one season.

Super Mutant Magic Academy - no dates thus far, and not even certain to be a Toonami show, but it’s a Toonami coded show so we shouldn’t be surprised if we end up stuck with it. 
 

Acquired sequels that the block can get 

Bleach TYBW S4 - set for 2026, for sure not making the winter season. Discussion from Kubo implies and absolute best case scenario would be Summer 2026, but between airing and dubbing, this easily could end up being a 2027 pickup 

Blue Exorcist S5 - I’d say it’s a safe bet this replaces S4 in February 

Dan Da Dan S2 - if they are smart, they will wait till mid August or so to pick this up so it’s still premiering new episodes in October

Demon Slayer Hashira Training Arc - coming in at only 8 episodes, and with Infinity Castle multiple years off from getting a TV cut, they likely are not in a huge rush to get this on

One Punch Man S3 - Unfortunately, we likely will have this visual abomination on the block. Of all the sequels we lost access to, why couldn’t this have been one of them? 

 

Concerningly, that’s it on the sequel front. As we know, any sequel series held by Crunchyroll is off limits, so the likes of MHA, Dr Stone, Fire Force, etc won’t ever complete their runs on Toonami barring a large shift in attitude over at Crunchyroll. 
 

What about non sequel pickups? Unfortunately, Toonami still seems to be in a very narrow focused mindset on this front. Our only fresh title in 2025 was Dan Da Dan, which while enjoyable, is another Jump series. The Sentai, Viz and Aniplex catalogs continue to be ignored, and while you would think GKIDS would have something else, they really don’t, aside from Witch Watch, which isn’t the genre Toonami typically goes for. 
 

On the business side of things, WBD is once again up for sale with some big names throwing their wad on the table to try to lock it down, but as far as affecting Toonami specifically? I doubt we see anything of note. Unless Adult Swim as a whole takes a hit, we likely won’t see any effects on the block. Even if we do see AS take a hit, odds are it won’t happen right away, we can probably clear most of this year without any issues from the sale. 
 

So, what are everyone else’s thoughts and expectations for 2026?

[Mr. Idea Box]

I'm glad that the trend of annual Toonami predictions is being kept alive. I'm also glad that my workload in predicting these things gets to take its own holiday.

2 hours ago, Toonamiguy321 said:

With the December 20th schedule revealed to be a normal night, the only thing left for Toonami in 2025 is a marathon I guarantee no one cares about. So let’s look forward to 2026. 
 

For the first time in many years, we aren’t ending the year on a whimper with vast schedule gaps that need filled as soon as the calendar rolls over to January. In fact, we are solid for about a month and a half. Here are estimated end dates, accounting for a likely marathon the first Saturday of the year on Jan 3rd

Bleach S3 - March 14th

Blue Exorcist - February 7th

Mashle - February 7th

One Piece - never

Dan Da Dan - January 31st

Daima - April 4th

Naruto - on demand says it expires in May, I doubt they maintain the license. 
 

As we know Primal S3 reruns are likely going to shit up the schedule on 1/17, I’d bet Dan Da Dan either runs an episode on both marathon nights, or gets doubled up a few weeks to clear it off the schedule and open a slot. 

The finale dates check out on my end of the sector. However, I would argue they'd use this as an excuse to dump Naruto before the contract runs out, as it's clearly the oldest show on the block by that point.

As for Dan Da Dan, I'd prefer if it got doubled up, since Blue Exorcist and Mashle would have conveniently premiered seven episodes by the end of December.

2 hours ago, Toonamiguy321 said:

Let’s take stock of what we know is coming on the original side, and what accessible sequels they can grab. 
 

Originals

Primal S3 - confirmed premiers off Toonami, likely rerunning at midnight for the block on 1/17. 

Rooster Fighter - confirmed for spring 2026, likely going to slide right in around when Primal ends. 

Get Jiro! - Implied for a 2026 release but we don’t have many other details. 

My Adventures with Superman S3 and S4 - no date given, though these were announced mid 2024 so 2026 could be in the strike zone for at least one season.

Super Mutant Magic Academy - no dates thus far, and not even certain to be a Toonami show, but it’s a Toonami coded show so we shouldn’t be surprised if we end up stuck with it. 

If I recall correctly, Ninja Kamui is slated for a second and third season. If that's still the case, I can see S2 of NK getting a comfy midnight slot somewhere this year. In that event, I'd bet that Jiro gets demoted to 12:30.

Super Mutant Magic Academy, on the other hand? If we're not getting the premieres, we're absolutely getting the reruns.

2 hours ago, Toonamiguy321 said:

Acquired sequels that the block can get 

Bleach TYBW S4 - set for 2026, for sure not making the winter season. Discussion from Kubo implies and absolute best case scenario would be Summer 2026, but between airing and dubbing, this easily could end up being a 2027 pickup 

Blue Exorcist S5 - I’d say it’s a safe bet this replaces S4 in February 

Dan Da Dan S2 - if they are smart, they will wait till mid August or so to pick this up so it’s still premiering new episodes in October

Demon Slayer Hashira Training Arc - coming in at only 8 episodes, and with Infinity Castle multiple years off from getting a TV cut, they likely are not in a huge rush to get this on

One Punch Man S3 - Unfortunately, we likely will have this visual abomination on the block. Of all the sequels we lost access to, why couldn’t this have been one of them? 

I'd be shocked if Toonami's still around in 2027, so Bleach being part of their first post-M&A reset might help their case. The jury's still out on Demon Slayer and Dan Da Dan IMO, although I can't say I disagree with you on BE's fifth season.

But One Punch Man Season 3? I'm afraid I don't know how bad it looks. Judging by the responses I've seen online, maybe that's a good thing.

2 hours ago, Toonamiguy321 said:

Concerningly, that’s it on the sequel front. As we know, any sequel series held by Crunchyroll is off limits, so the likes of MHA, Dr Stone, Fire Force, etc won’t ever complete their runs on Toonami barring a large shift in attitude over at Crunchyroll. 

That doesn't sound good.

2 hours ago, Toonamiguy321 said:

What about non sequel pickups? Unfortunately, Toonami still seems to be in a very narrow focused mindset on this front. Our only fresh title in 2025 was Dan Da Dan, which while enjoyable, is another Jump series. The Sentai, Viz and Aniplex catalogs continue to be ignored, and while you would think GKIDS would have something else, they really don’t, aside from Witch Watch, which isn’t the genre Toonami typically goes for. 

What's worse is that Shonen Jump has the same opinion on its own material, usually ending newer manga in 20 chapters or less. Not necessarily a vote of confidence in the East, either.

2 hours ago, Toonamiguy321 said:

On the business side of things, WBD is once again up for sale with some big names throwing their wad on the table to try to lock it down, but as far as affecting Toonami specifically? I doubt we see anything of note. Unless Adult Swim as a whole takes a hit, we likely won’t see any effects on the block. Even if we do see AS take a hit, odds are it won’t happen right away, we can probably clear most of this year without any issues from the sale. 

I hope you're right about this. Because if changes do happen to Toonami, I feel like their 30th anniversary would be their last.

2 hours ago, Toonamiguy321 said:

So, what are everyone else’s thoughts and expectations for 2026?

Pretty much the same as yours, frankly. With a few minor additions.

1: To get the most money's worth, most of 2026's rerun fodder will be Bleach: TYBW, as they have a 40-episode backlog already. Ditto that for Blue Ex.

2: Rooster Fighter will get a rerun slot in the summer. Whether it's at 2 AM, 2:30, or 3 AM, I am currently unsure.

3: Perhaps they'll use a marathon to put 3 AM to pasture in 2026.

[KageRageX]

Literally most of the same.

Maybe we could get Yaiba next year? Maybe Black Torch someday (ofc after that comes out, in which Viz needs to say something about that).

[MasqueradeOverture]

Adult Swim will cease to be a channel after the WB sell off.

[PokeNirvash]

Crunchyroll finally dislodges its head from its own ass and lets [as] start licensing stuff from them again. Because as their renewed relationship with Aniplex has proven, Sony ain't the fucking problem.

[Jman]

The sale will be confirmed, and the buyer will not want the networks, allowing them to be spun off with the infamous Warner debt as cable television continues its last gasp.  However, Toonami day-to-day operations continue as-is with licensing deals with their former Warner Bros Netflix masters (I'm predicting Netflix will win the bidding, with the WB board hoping Trump dies soon, making his threat to stall the merger superfluous), which allow their original materials to air unimpeded.  DeMarco is SOL when asking for stuff like Ranma 1/2 and Baki, though.  (Yeah, they leave him with the networks for obvious reasons.)  Surprisingly, Warner Bros Netflix holds onto the "Adult Swim" name, and several other miscellaneous names, but the block keeps the name through the licensing agreements as mentioned.  

Crunchyroll continues to do zero business with the gutted Cartoon Network.  This slightly annoys old-school Toonami fans as the Ronin Warriors remake/sequel airs on Crunchyroll and not Toonami.

Get Jiro! airs in the summer, and as hinted by the promo art, it's a combination of the original comic and the Blood and Sushi prequel.  The more realistic, less stylized take on the material divides critics.

Adult Swim tries to get Demon Slayer Hashira Training Arc to air concurrently with either the Crunchyroll (February 2026 earliest) or Netflix (Summer 2026) airings of the first Infinity Castle movie.  The inevitable Infinity Castle TV show edit remains a distant dream.

Viz continues to do business with Adult Swim when everyone else is dealt with, resulting in Yaiba airing in Spring or Summer 2026, where everyone points out how good it looks visually.  That also means OPM Season 3, which...doesn't.  

MAWS S3 either airs in Spring or Fall, deliberately avoiding stepping on Supergirl's toes.  

Super Mutant Magic Academy will air and flop, because it will be an "All Hands on Deck" situation at that point for Toonami.  All the other past Toonami originals, like the Flop Girl and Ninja Kamui get official cancellations due to the Warner spigot being cut off.

 

[Mr. Idea Box]

I personally don't know who will buy WB. But I do have some ideas for a post-Skydance world.

• As previously stated, the Ellisons want to buy ALL off WBD, including the cable networks. I will preface this by saying Adult Swim folds into Comedy Central, Cartoon Network and Nicktoons Network merge, and Boomerang becomes Discovery Family's overnight block, if not the new look of it.
• However, Toonami either shuts down by the year's end, or moves to the combined CN and Nicktoons channel.
  • In the event of a shutdown, I would hope they try to cap off its run by airing its older programming, mirroring the 2012 prank.
  • In the event of a move to the combined network, I could see Avatar: The Last Airbender getting one of the available rerun slots, given its newfound status as "American anime".
• In terms of pickups, Crunchyroll stays away from Toonami even after all this, meaning My Hero Academia and the rest won't finish their runs on the quote-on-quote "anime block". Memes of Fry Cook Deku come back as a result.
• Yaiba and One-Punch Man are put on the block, mainly as the final pickups from the dubbing studio behind Inuyasha and Bleach.
• MAWS Season 3 airs in the summer, to capitalize on Supergirl.
• Ninja Kamui's second season airs...somewhere in 2026. Its third season, on the other hand, is cancelled.
• All this to say, Toonami isn't long for this world. No matter what happens to WB.

[Jman]

Paramount is crying to the media, which indicates they're losing.

https://www.thewrap.com/paramount-accuses-warner-bros-discovery-unfair-bidding-process/

I think Netflix will win (although Comcast seems to have the potential to emerge as a dark horse) because Paramount wouldn't be complaining this publicly otherwise.  

I do think that a Netflix and/or Comcast purchase goes roughly about the same for Toonami as a block.  The networks are spun off, material is held through licensing agreements done in good faith, and DeMarco is left on board the sinking ship.  It's actually worse for DeMarco if Comcast gets it though, because Comcast doesn't give two shits about anime while Netflix is heavily invested in it.

[MasqueradeOverture]

3 hours ago, Jman said:

Paramount is crying to the media, which indicates they're losing.

https://www.thewrap.com/paramount-accuses-warner-bros-discovery-unfair-bidding-process/

I think Netflix will win (although Comcast seems to have the potential to emerge as a dark horse) because Paramount wouldn't be complaining this publicly otherwise.  

I do think that a Netflix and/or Comcast purchase goes roughly about the same for Toonami as a block.  The networks are spun off, material is held through licensing agreements done in good faith, and DeMarco is left on board the sinking ship.  It's actually worse for DeMarco if Comcast gets it though, because Comcast doesn't give two shits about anime while Netflix is heavily invested in it.

Hunter X Hunter's on / been on Peacock for years so who knows.

[Top Gun]

Sure are some...takes in here. 

[PokeNirvash]

7 hours ago, Mr. Idea Box said:

Yaiba and One-Punch Man are put on the block, mainly as the final pickups from the dubbing studio behind Inuyasha and Bleach.

Uhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

Only Yaiba and OPM were dubbed by the same studio (Bang Zoom!). Inuyasha was Ocean, while Bleach is Studiopolis. I think the term you were looking for there was "licensor".

Edited 1 hour ago by PokeNirvash

[Blatch]

Cosmo Samurai: The Series.