The 12 Most Anticipated Animated TV Shows of 2024
2023 was a stellar year for animation, with some bonafide classics like Scavengers Reign and Blue Eye Samurai reminding us of how special animation can be. We can't wait to see what shows this year might leave us with the same sense of awe, but so far 2024 is looking stacked with some incredible animated programming.
We're taking a look at 2024's most anticipated animated shows from from Amazon's Prime Video, Disney+, Max, Netflix, and Peacock, which include series adapted from DC and Marvel comics, YouTube shorts, anime, and even some seriously beloved video games. They cover everything from public radio to treasure hunting and hotel management, and feature a variety of gorgeous animation styles.
Some of these shows, like Tomb Raider: The Legend of Lara Croft, have been in the works for years, so something you've been waiting for might be on here. This list is primarily focused on Western animation, with a little bit of anime influence here and there. So it's safe to say you probably won't see that isekai anime you were waiting for on this list--unless it's Suicide Squad Isekai. And despite all of our digging around, we might've missed a few upcoming shows worth shouting out, so let us know what animation you're excited for in the coming year down in the comments!
1. Hazbin Hotel
Streams on: Prime Video
Premieres: January 19, 2024
Charlie Morningstar is the princess of Hell, and she wants to differentiate herself from her father, creating Happy Hotel in hopes of rehabilitating denizens of hell so that they can get into Heaven. Hazbin Hotel began as a YouTube pilot in 2019, where it has since garnered more than 93 million views. The pilot was picked up to become a series by A24. In the interim, the same team produced a spin-off web series, Helluva Boss, which has 21 episodes to date. Hazbin Hotel will finally premiere on Prime Video later this month.
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2. In The Know
Streams on: Peacock
Premieres: January 25, 2024
With the right combination of improvisation and editing, a conversation with a celebrity can turn into comedy gold. See Space Ghost Coast to Coast, Dr. Katz, Web Therapy, and Between Two Ferns with Zack Galifianakis. The latest show in this lineage is In The Know (trailer). Created by Mike Judge (Beavis and Butt-Head, Silicon Valley, King of the Hill), this series puts Zach Woods (Silicon Valley, The Office) into the role of public radio talk show host Lauren Caspian. The show's regular cast members are all stop-motion style puppets, while the celebrities Caspian interviews are all their regular live-action selves. Caspian, described by the creators as a "well-meaning, hypocritical nimrod," brings all the gravitas of an NPR host but is guilelessly unaware as he asks his guests pointed but inappropriate questions.
3. The Second Best Hospital in the Galaxy
Streams on: Prime Video
Premieres: February 23, 2024
Dr. Sleech and Dr. Klak are best friends and intergalactically-renowned surgeons, according to the description for The Second Best Hospital in the Galaxy, and tangle with all manner of medical issues, including anxiety-eating parasites, illegal time loops, and deep-space STIs, according to the official synopsis for the show. The series stars Stephanie Hsu and Keke Palmer as Doctors Sleech and Klak, as well as Maya Rudolph and Natasha Lyonne, both of whom are also producing the series alongside showrunner Cirocco Dunlap.
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4. X-Men '97
Streams on: Disney+
Premieres: March 27, 2024
Children of the '90s can look at just the title, X-Men '97, and they'll hear the original series' distinctive theme song in their heads. They'll probably even remember Rogue and Storm flying in front of the X-Men logo. If any '90s cartoon can compare to Batman: The Animated Series in terms of the influence it had over the source material and the size of the audience it introduced to those characters, the original X-Men animated series is it. X-Men '97 is intended to be a return to form. While it may not be a straight-up continuation of that series, it sports a similar look, many of the same characters, and even some of the same voice actors, with some of them in different roles. We won't know until the first season--a second season is already in the works--is out, but it seems like the team behind this show is doing everything it can to honor the original series.
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5. Invincible Season 2, Part 2
Streams on: Prime Video
Premieres: Early 2024
After a long wait following Invincible Season 1, we were excited to check out Season 2 (trailer) last fall. Well, all four episodes of Part 1. The four-episode arc ended on a brutal note that put Mark Grayson at the center of a gory intergalactic battle between the Viltrumites and humanity. Mark has a difficult decision to make that will affect not just his entire life, but every human on Earth, and a few planets in between.
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6. Suicide Squad Isekai
Streams on: Max
Premieres: Early 2024
Normal, everyday people finding themselves transported to another world is so common in anime that there's a specific word to describe the idea: Isekai. Normally, the main characters in an Isekai anime are dorky nerds or high-school aged girls who end up in a world where they have magical powers, incredible strength, and are the destined hero who will solve all of that world's problems--the fantasy of being taken out of our bland daily existence and dropped into a world where we're important, cool, and appreciated by those around us. The Suicide Squad is already important and cool, so what are the members to do when ARGUS boss Amanda Waller sends them to a fantasy world full of fantasy tropes? Well, they're going to try to conquer it, of course. Suicide Squad Isekai (trailer) promises to be one of the weirdest DC animated shows yet--and that includes the Harley Quinn Valentine's Day special.
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7. Kite Man: Hell Yeah!
Streams on: Max
Premieres: Early 2024
Kite Man isn't an A-Tier villain. He's not even B-Tier, and C-Tier seems kind of generous. He's a dork of a criminal. There's no way that Batman writer Tom King could've known how much it would resonate when he brought the character back in 2016's Batman Vol. 3 #6, turning him into a tragic figure with a killer catchphrase: "Kite Man. Hell yeah." The minds behind the Harley Quinn animated series saw the character's value immediately, though, and brought him into their twisted version of Gotham City. There, he became an overconfident, rarely successful criminal with a weirdly good heart. While things didn't work out with Poison Ivy (not to mention the state of the Old Gotham Corn Factory), Kite Man still has a lot going on. When we last saw him, he was in a healthy, happy relationship with Golden Glider, and this year he's getting his own TV series named after his catchphrase (trailer). The two lovebirds (that's a flight joke) are opening a bar in Gotham right next to Lex Luthor's Legion of Doom headquarters. In other words, it's Cheers, but for dorks in tights.
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8. Harley Quinn Season 5
Streams on: Max
Premieres: Mid-Late 2024
When last we left Harley and Ivy, they were just reuniting. Season 4 had its high points, but we missed seeing our two anti-heroes working together. We're hoping that Season 5 will find a way to keep Harlivy together without re-treading the same ground. The show has been good about evolving the characters without being overly serious about it, and we're excited to see where the show goes from here.
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9. Creature Commandos
Streams on: Max
Premieres: Late 2024
James Gunn's DC Universe is just getting started, but the Creature Commandos animated series will likely be the very first entry in what will hopefully be an expansive collection of comic book TV shows, movies, and even video games. Creature Commandos is in the same vein as some of Gunn's other projects, like The Suicide Squad and Guardians of the Galaxy--a team of weirdos who will take on challenges much bigger than they were ever intended for. Team members include Bride of Frankenstein, Eric Frankenstein (no relation to this writer), the radioactive Dr. Phosphorus, a robot specifically designed to kill Nazis, and Weasel, who you may remember from the beginning (and very end) of The Suicide Squad. Cast members include David Harbour, Alan Tudyk, Maria Bakalova, Frank Grillo, and Sean Gunn. Steve Agee will reprise his role as John Economos from the live-action Peacemaker series and Gunn's The Suicide Squad film.
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10. Tomb Raider: The Legend of Lara Croft
Streams on: Netflix
Premieres: 2024
When we first met Lara Croft way back in 1996, she was a fully-formed character--an experienced and knowledgeable treasure hunter that combines the best parts of Indiana Jones and James Bond, before layering on all the sex appeal they could fit into PlayStation graphics. In 2013, a new take on Tomb Raider arrived that grounded the character, giving her a more believable origin story and putting her through her paces as an amateur treasure hunter. She never became the dual-pistol-wielding, round-lens-glasses-wearing hero that she began as. Why is this important? Netflix's upcoming Tomb Raider: The Legend of Lara Croft (trailer) seeks to bridge that gap."The Tomb Raider anime series from Legendary and Netflix will provide fans…with some of the first steps toward unifying the Tomb Raider timelines, as we transition beyond the Survivor trilogy and start to follow Lara’s journey leading up to the first steps of that first Tomb Raider game," said executive producer Tasha Huo in a video update about the series back in 2022. In other words, this isn't a rehashing of something we've seen before, but rather an attempt to tell us a story about a part of Lara's life that we never had the chance to play in a video game. Tomb Raider fans new and old should be able to find something to enjoy here.
11. Devil May Cry
Streams on: Netflix
Premieres: 2024
We're thinking it, too: Wasn't there a Devil May Cry anime like fifteen years ago? There sure was. This is a new Netflix-funded production being produced by Adi Shankar, who also produced Castlevania, Captain Lazerhawk, and the Guardians of Justice (Will Save You) for the streamer. We don't know a whole lot about the series, but Netflix has announced that this new Devil May Cry (trailer) will be 8 episodes for the first season. Reuben Langdon, who has voiced Devil May Cry protagonist Dante since 2005--including in the 2007 anime's English voice track--will reportedly not be voicing the character this time around.
12. Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man
Streams on: Disney+
Premieres: 2024
Originally titled Spider-Man: Freshman Year, this Spider-Man series was meant to follow the MCU's Peter Parker before we met him--from his initial spider bite forward. Since then, though, the show has been renamed to something a little less connected to the MCU films, and the show itself has reportedly been reworked to stand more on its own. Concept art for the series features characters like Norman and Harry Osborn, and Otto Octavius--better known as two Green Goblins and one Doctor Octopus. If Spidey's fight against Vulture was about him getting his big-boy pants and graduating from his dependence on Tony Stark, then it doesn't make sense for him to have fought these iconic villains before vulture, an old guy with robot wings. Not to mention that time where he laughed at Otto's name. This show is currently set to premiere sometime this year, though with no casting information available, we're not ready to call this a sure thing.
