COVID-19: Adult Swim Producer Updates Toonami Status

Of all of the animation sectors going through the COVID-19 pandemic right now, anime and stop-motion animation are getting the worst of it. Funimation’s simuldub properties haven’t premiered aired new episodes in a couple weeks now, and now Adult Swim producer Jason Clark warns of potential delays for the action-toon block Toonami.

Jason’s always been one of the more prolific at giving fans information on Twitter about whatever, and in this time of crisis, he hasn’t shied away from the tough questions which is very commendable. Jason posted an overall theme to this pandemic and how it will affect the Toonami lineup that you can read below:

The quarantine will definitely affect delivery of several Toonami shows. You are going to see things like marathons, maybe special plays of classic shows, and yeah, some reruns. We are going to do our best to keep things fresh, for as long as we can. 

Obvious candidates that will be affected are the aforementioned Funimation simuldubs that get syndicated on Toonami after they stream. This includes properties like My Hero Academia, Black Clover, and more. Fortunately, Adult Swim originals like Uzumaki and Blade Runner appear to still be on track for an eventual premiere, though in the short-term, fans should expect an increase in marathons to help pass the time as original premieres start to run out. Already announced, a Dragon Ball Z: Kai marathon for April 11th starting at 1130 pm ET/PT and running through 3 am ET/PT. Other points of interest, no sign of Bleach’s final arc premiering on the lineup nor a return of the English dub adaptation of Boruto, however maybe another run of FLCL? “Maybe”.

This Saturday’s run of Toonami is still all-new, and we’ll let you know of any more scheduling updates.