Highly-Anticipated Fantasy Anime Reveals First Look at 2026 Premiere Following Delay: Watch

A highly anticipated fantasy anime, originally planned for release this year, has been delayed until 2026, as revealed in a new trailer. While the Fall 2025 anime season is shaping up to be quite strong, it would be even better if several delayed series had met their original deadlines. Unfortunately, a few anime productions, including this one, have experienced significant delays, pushing their premieres to the following year.

I’m so excited! The anime adaptation of *Sentenced to Be a Hero* was originally planned for Fall 2025, but they decided to push it back to January 2026 to really make it shine. Good news is, it’s officially happening then, and they just dropped a brand new trailer you can check out – it looks amazing!

Sentenced to be a Hero Reveals First Look at 2026 Premiere

The anime series *Sentenced to Be a Hero* has been delayed from its original October premiere and will now launch in January as part of the 2026 anime season. Along with the new release window, two new voice actors have been announced: Shoya Chiba will play Jayce Partiract, and Yoko Hikasa will voice Neely. They join previously announced cast members Yohei Azakami (Xylo Forbartz), Mayu Iizuka (Teoritta), Shizuka Ishigami (Patausche Kivia), Shun Horie (Dotta Luzulas), and Shunichi Toki (Venetim Leopool), many of whom appear in the recently released trailer.

The highly anticipated new anime will launch next year with a special hour-long premiere episode, making up for the long wait. New episodes will be available to stream on Crunchyroll. Hiroyuki Takashima will direct the anime at Studio KAI, with Yoshitake Nakakoji as assistant director and creature designer. Kenta Ihara will write the scripts, Takeshi Noda will handle character design, and Shunsuke Takizawa will compose the music.

What Is Sentenced to Be a Hero Anyway?

With so many anime featuring characters transported to other worlds lately, we’re seeing a return to more classic fantasy settings. These new fantasy anime are often darker and more complex than before, and *Sentenced to Be a Hero: The Prison Records of Penal Hero Unit 9004* seems poised to deliver on that trend, building on the exciting potential it’s already shown.

The story centers around a convicted criminal given a brutal punishment: becoming a hero tasked with endlessly fighting demons, dying, and being reborn. This cycle is meant for the most heinous offenders, but things change when the newest hero meets a goddess. Their connection promises to shake up everything. With the anime adaptation set to premiere next year, fans are eager to see if it lives up to the hype.

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2025-09-22 19:10