MAPPA CEO Breaks Silence on Cancelled Anime Despite Massive Success

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Founded in 2011, MAPPA has quickly become a leading animation studio, known for popular series like Jujutsu Kaisen, Chainsaw Man, and Attack on Titan. But before those hits, it was the 2016 sports anime Yuri!!! on Ice that first brought the studio widespread recognition. 2016 proved to be a pivotal year for MAPPA, leading to the release of Banana Fish and other successful shows in the following years. Yuri!!! on Ice quickly gained a large and dedicated fanbase as a unique sports series, and a prequel film was announced soon after. The series originally aired from October to December 2016, with plans for the story to continue at a later date.

Fans were eagerly awaiting the next chapter in the lives of figure skaters Yuri Katsuki and Victor Nikiforov, particularly after Victor chose to become a coach. A film exploring Victor’s past as a top skater was in development and even had a teaser released. However, those hopes were dashed when MAPPA officially cancelled the project in April 2025. According to Anime Corner, MAPPA CEO Manabu Otsuka recently discussed the studio’s past difficulties and successes in an interview with Bungeishunju (Bunshun) Plus, explaining the reasons behind the cancellation.

MAPPA CEO Discloses Why Yuri!!! on Ice Was Cancelled

Hideo Katsumata, a producer at Avex Pictures, initially stated the anime’s cancellation stemmed from internal creative disagreements. Even though the decision sparked significant controversy and disappointed many fans who had waited eight years for more, the studio decided not to continue the series. According to Otsuka, sales of the Blu-ray and DVD releases exceeded 430,000 copies, generating approximately $20 million in revenue.

We realized the studio wasn’t positioned to lead the business within the production committee. We were responsible for quality control, meeting deadlines, and handling financial risks, but we weren’t seeing the biggest share of the profits. We finally understood this imbalance.

MAPPA wanted to be a full-service animation studio, so they built a team to handle licensing and began producing more high-quality anime consistently. Despite difficulties, they worked on popular shows like Zombie Land Saga, Banana Fish, and Jujutsu Kaisen, and even took on the final season of Attack on Titan. Because of this heavy workload, another well-loved sports anime project was unfortunately put on hold, disappointing fans worldwide.

Yuri!!! on Ice Purposely Leaves Room For The Story’s Continuation

As a huge fan, it was clear while Yuri!!! on Ice was being made that the creators were hoping to continue the story – maybe with more seasons or movies! That’s why the ending felt a little open-ended, not really wrapping everything up. Yuri didn’t quite reach his dream of winning gold, settling for silver, but honestly, I loved that he didn’t dwell on it. He immediately asked Victor to stay on as his coach for another year, and you could just feel how happy Victor was about that! It was a perfect setup for more, and I’m still hoping we’ll get it someday.

Victor promised to continue coaching Yuri for five more years, hoping Yuri would achieve the same level of success as he had. The story concludes with Victor and Yuri performing together after Victor’s return to the ice, suggesting their final performance happens sometime after Yuri reaches his goals. While Yuri’s journey is still ongoing, fans were left wanting more, particularly regarding Victor’s backstory which was intended to be explored in a planned prequel movie.

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2026-04-02 03:41