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Kingdom Hearts Gets First Anime Series, Original Story With Tetsuya Nomura

The anime marks Disney's first original television series for the Kingdom Hearts franchise, following a shelved pilot from the early 2000s, and arrives alongside the late 2027 release of Kingdom Hearts IV, signaling a major push for the franchise across media.

Key Facts

  • Kingdom Hearts The Series is an original anime series for Disney Channel and Disney+, co-produced by Disney Kids & Family and Square Enix.
  • Tetsuya Nomura, creator of Kingdom Hearts, is involved with the Square Enix creative team on the anime.
  • The anime will feature a completely new story, not a direct adaptation of any game narrative.
  • Disney has not revealed the animation studio, voice cast, or release date for Kingdom Hearts The Series.
  • Kingdom Hearts IV will launch in late 2027 for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch 2, and PC, and will include a world based on Pixar's Coco.

Reporting from 7 sources: Anime News Network, 4Gamer.net, Cartoon Brew, Automaton, and 3 more.

Kingdom Hearts Gets First Anime Series, Original Story With Tetsuya Nomura

Disney announced at D23 on August 15 that Kingdom Hearts is being adapted into an original anime series, titled Kingdom Hearts The Series, for Disney Channel and Disney+. The project is a co-production between Disney Kids & Family and Square Enix, with franchise creator Tetsuya Nomura and the Square Enix creative team involved. The series will feature a completely new story, not a direct adaptation of any game narrative, and will expand the Kingdom Hearts universe while bringing back established characters. The announcement did not reveal the animation studio, voice cast, or release date. A teaser visual shows a mysterious boy holding a Keyblade in a design that evokes Japanese animation. Disney Kids & Family president Ayo Davis said the series will be "unmistakably Kingdom Hearts" while allowing fans to experience the worlds they love in a new way. The announcement follows a previous attempt at a Kingdom Hearts animated series in the early 2000s, which was shelved. The game franchise has shipped over 39 million units worldwide since its 2002 debut.

The announcement came during the Disney Entertainment Showcase panel at D23 in Anaheim, California. Disney did not disclose which animation studio is producing the series, nor did it offer a release window. The series is described as an original story "rebuilt specifically for this installment," with Nomura and the Square Enix creative team participating.

This is not Disney's first attempt at a Kingdom Hearts show. Shortly after the original game launched in 2002, Disney commissioned a pilot directed by Seth Kearsley, which was never picked up. Kearsley posted the long-lost animatic online in 2022, saying it tested well with children but was shelved anyway.

The game franchise has shipped more than 39 million units worldwide as of March 2026, according to Anime Anime. The announcement also comes as Square Enix prepares Kingdom Hearts IV for a late 2027 launch, which will include a world based on Pixar's Coco, with Benjamin Bratt reprising his role as Ernesto de la Cruz. The game will launch simultaneously on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch 2, and PC via Microsoft Store, Steam, and Epic Games Store.

Synthesized by Yomimono from the 7 cited sources below, including Japanese-language reporting where cited, then editorially reviewed before publishing.

Kingdom Hearts Square Enix Disney Tetsuya Nomura

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