Anime, just like any art product made for the masses, is just as susceptible as any medium to development hell. The term, meant to indicate significant challenges, especially in the earlier stages of a project’s creation seemingly halting progress or even changing hands between directors, staff, and even studios.
Anime has thus experienced all manner of production hell since its infancy for any number of reasons. Some, like Uzumaki or One-Punch Man season 3, prove that escaping production hell doesn’t even necessarily save the final anime product. Others, like Ice Adolescence, don’t even get the chance to shine, languishing in development hell before being shelved entirely.
As a result, anime production hell is a touchy subject among fans, especially for those hoping against hope for their continued series. While some anime encounter hell-like hiatuses like Nana or D.Gray-man for unfortunate reasons like their creator not releasing new chapters, others, like Boruto, risk production hell due to longtime directors seemingly quitting. Some, however, still get a chance.
Survived: Saga of Tanya the Evil Season 2
Announced in 2021, Coming 2026
Perhaps in solidarity with its atheist protagonist, Saga of Tanya the Evil survived production hell simply by not believing in it. The anime, featuring a salaryman reincarnated as a young magically-gifted orphan girl in The Empire, meant to represent an alternate-history 1920s-era Germany. Now Tanya von Degurechaff, the protagonist wages war against Entity X, the world’s self-proclaimed god.
Saga of Tanya the Evil is lauded as one of the best isekai anime despite only airing one season in 2017. However, in 2021, its announcement of Saga of Tanya the Evil 2, was followed by silence until its 2025 trailer. With director Takayuki Yamamoto taking over for Yutaka Umemura while the cast remained unchanged, production hell was narrowly escaped.
Survived: Mobile Suit Gundam SEED Freedom
Announced in 2006, Released in 2024
Mobile Suit Gundam SEED has had plenty of influence on the modern Gundam fandom, particularly with millennials both in Japan and worldwide. The film, itself a sequel to Gundam SEED Destiny, encountered unfortunate delays due to the writer, Chiaki Morosawa, having to juggle the project and her medical treatments, before ultimately passing away. It eventually officially entered production in 2021.
Much like with Kentaro Miura of Berserk, this project was initially halted by Morosawa having an aortic dissection and dying in 2016. Her name still importantly shows on the credits, and the project is both seen as a product of its own era, yet also a satisfying, wildly entertaining Gundam movie.
Survived: Puella Magi Madoka Magica the Movie: Walpurgisnacht Rising
Announced in 2021, Coming 2026
Unlike most anime projects met with long delays, with this one being an especially large serving of word-and-syllable soup, Walpurgisnacht Rising was set to release in Q1 2024, being subsequently delayed a year, and finally set for February 2026. Its new trailer is highly encouraging, but these delays certainly stifled hype.
Initially announced in 2021 to commemorate the anime’s 10th anniversary, the characteristically late final product’s release will officially now release at the 15-year mark at this point. Still, with the series commonly celebrated as one of anime’s most brilliant subversive gems, it appears this patience may finally be rewarded.
Survived: New Panty and Stocking with Garterbelt
Teased in 2010, Released in 2025
New Panty and Stocking with Garterbelt
In what was not the only instance of Studio Gainax jamming up the works, this irreverent anime was left on a cliffhanger with 15 years passing before its return. While director Hiroyuki Imaishi initially teased a second season, numerous troubles began, including an exodus of staff which would become Studio Trigger in 2011.
In terms of choices, this turned out to be the best possible decision, with this lengthy saga being marked by legal disputes over ownership of the intellectual property. While Trigger, co-founded by Imaishi himself, got the rights to this anime in 2021, it also carved a potent niche for itself as one of new-gen anime’s greatest eclectic innovators.
Survived: Neon Genesis Evangelion
Began Development in 1993, Released in 1995
Credited with deconstructing the mecha genre on top of the Gundam franchise dissecting its Real Robot qualities, Evangelion ran into its fair share of troubles. Instead of lengthy sagas, staff departures, or production committee decisionmaking, Studio Gainax instead ran into trouble frequently when it came to handling its deadlines.
Evangelion’s story changed and deviated from original plans by the halfway point, and Hideaki Anno lamented about the lack of available resources for the studio. Later episodes featured significant direction changes, and plenty of speculation emerged as to whether the final product of the last episodes was due to the aforementioned conditions coming to a head.
The crazy bit is, the original Evangelion anime wasn’t the only instance of the franchise dodging development hell. Evangelion: 3.0+1.0 Thrice Upon a Time was met with multiple delays, with the initial three films in the Rebuild of Evangelion project releasing in 2007, 2009, and 2012, with the fourth film encountering an overall nine-year delay.
Development Hell: Zero Century
Announced in 2017, Likely Shelved
Space Pirate Captain Harlock
A likely casualty of Studio Gainax’s 2024 bankruptcy and December 2025’s dissolution, Zero Century was meant to be its big tribute to Leiji Matsumoto’s monumental influence on anime. After all, Matsumoto’s creations included Space Battleship Yamato, which largely influenced the term “anime” to replace more throwaway titles like “terebi manga” and elevate the concept as an art medium.
With the project announced in 2017, it was a planned film trilogy covering three different iconic Matsumoto series: The Zero Century Emeraldas (Queen Emeraldas) in 2020; The Zero Century Herlock (Space Pirate Captain Harlock) in 2023; and The Zero Century Maetel (Galaxy Express 999) in 2026. It’s now 2026, and none of these have been released, each being seldom discussed.
Development Hell: Peanuts
Announced in 2012, Status Unknown
Peanuts celebrating Thanksgiving in A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving
That is correct: Madhouse announced in January 2012 that production began on Peanuts, the 75-year-old American comic strip by Charles M. Schulz. With such an incredible studio behind it, it was sure to be a fantastic blend of innovative, clean, prestige animation with Schulz’s blend of introspective, spiritual, and kid-friendly themes.
However, nothing has appeared of substance about this since. Peanuts even got a feature-length film, crucially not animated by Madhouse despite them supposedly being designated by Peanuts Worldwide LLC as their chosen animation studio. While fans might understandably want practically anything else out of Japan from the studio, this project would have been undeniably charming and memorable.
Development Hell: Akira
Announced in 2019, Status Unknown
Akira anime
It’s impossible to overstate the influence of Akira on anime in film and television, as well as modern pop culture with its iconic shots nearly four decades later. However, the 1988 Akira movie only covers a portion of the overall manga’s run, with a more complete project teased by Studio Sunrise, now part of Bandai Namco Filmworks, at Anime Expo in 2019.
The project provided a teaser, with Sunrise former CEO (now Bandai Namco Filmworks CEO & president) Makoto Asanuma affirming plans to use the manga’s full story. However, despite it being one of the most prized seinen cyberpunk franchises of all time, not much if anything has been mentioned six years later.
Release Date
July 16, 1988
Runtime
124 Minutes
Director
Katsuhiro Otomo
