At their first joint studio presentation at Annecy’s Bonlieu theatre, DC Studios and Warner Bros. Animation unveiled three major next-up animated projects: “Joker: Laugh Riot,” DC Studios’ first-ever anime series; “Absolute Batman,” an adult animated series wr
When the lights went up in Annecy’s Bonlieu theatre, the mood shifted fast. This wasn’t just another panel—DC Studios and Warner Bros. Animation were sharing a slate meant to run years into the future, and the audience treated it like a moment that could change the next chapter of DC animation.
Thursday’s first joint studio presentation delivered three big headline projects on stage. Peter Safran, co-chairman and co-CEO of DC Studios, and Sam Register, president of Warner Bros. Animation, Cartoon Network Studio, and Hanna-Barbera Studios Europe, unveiled the animated announcements alongside Warner Bros. Animation showrunners and executive producers who shared first looks and creative insights.
For the clearest declaration of intent—DC leaning harder into anime—“Joker: Laugh Riot” arrived as DC Studios’ first-ever anime series. Warner Bros. Animation and DC Studios said they are teaming up with Sola Entertainment to bring the series to fans worldwide. Scott Snyder’s take on “Absolute Batman” and a new “Krypto” series were also unveiled as part of the same presentation.
“Joker: Laugh Riot” is helmed by “ChaO” award-winning director Yasuhiro Aoki. who previously worked on Warner Bros Animation and Sola’s joint feature “The Lords of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim.” The show will follow the Joker as he launches a ruthless crusade through Gotham’s underworld to find Batman’s killer—the person who took away his greatest adversary. and “incidentally. his own kill.”.
As the violent quest for answers pushes Joker closer towards vigilante than villain, Joker is forced to confront a new kind of emptiness: without Batman, he doesn’t know who he is.
The push into anime isn’t happening in isolation. The presentation also credited Warner Bros. Animation’s support for more anime content, including Jason DeMarco, senior VP, action and anime development at Warner Bros. Animation. who produced “The Lords of the Rohirrim.” DeMarco’s work is also tied to other anime-facing projects at Adult Swim. including a “Rick and Morty” anime adaptation and series “Lazarus” and “Uzumaki.”.
Register framed the room as something worth leaning into, calling Annecy “the best audience in the world for animation.” That sentiment landed immediately when the team unveiled the adult animated adaptation of “Absolute Batman,” met with raucous applause and cheers.
The new series is written by Scott Snyder with art by Nick Dragotta. Creators shared first-look images, with Snyder serving as executive producer and showrunner and Dragotta as producer.
The comic book series itself brought its own gravity to the announcement: “Absolute Batman” has sold more than 6 million copies to date, and the first issue has reached an eleventh edition. “Absolute” titles, including “Absolute Batman,” rank among the top 10 best-selling comics of 2025.
When it came time for the third major greenlight. “Krypto” was delivered as a fun. loud counterpoint to the darker Joker story. Warner Bros. Animation and DC Studios revealed Thursday that a new “Krypto” animated series had been greenlit. with “Chowder. ” “Jellystone” creator-writer C.H. Greenblatt set to drive the super-canine adventure.
In development at the time of the announcement. the series follows Krypto as he tags along with a gang of misfit criminal wannabes who live down the block. The group soon discovers Krypto is a ball of destructive, lovable energy worse than any of them. The premise is simple and messy on purpose—Krypto accompanies them into misadventures and poorly laid plans. and his pure nature slowly ends up redeeming them. whether they want it or not.
Beyond these three projects, Safran, Register, and Peter Girardi, executive vice president, alternative programming at Warner Bros. Animation, shared updates across adult, young adult, and kids programming.
Adult animated fan-favorite shows “Creatures Commandos” and “Batman: Caped Crusader” got the Bonlieu crowd on its feet. and “Batman: Caped Crusader” is set to launch on Prime Video on July 31. New shows such as “Mister Miracle” drew cheers, with author Tom King sharing his passion for the character. In remarks tied to the moment. King said. “Today. as animation keeps reaching new heights. I am deeply convinced we can create our own ‘Breaking Bad. ’ ‘Sopranos. ’ ‘Mad Men’ level shows. And I’m truly happy to bring ‘Mr Miracle’ to the screen.”.
On the Vertigo side of DC, “Get Jiro” was set to premiere this fall on Adult Swim. The show’s history with Annecy also came up: Warner Bros. Animation had announced it here three years ago, then brought it back for a riveting work-in-progress session last year in Annecy as well.
The young adults. kids. and family section also included “My Adventures with Green Lantern. ” described as a brand-new magical-girl inspired series from the “Adventure-verse. ” kickstarted by Jake Wyatt’s 2023 hit “My Adventures with Superman.” “Starfire!” was presented by executive producer Josie Campbell. and Matt Bean’s “DC Super Powers” was also included among the teased offerings.
Safran and Register confirmed the tenth season of “Teen Titans Go”—now DC’s longest running show ever—was currently in production. They marked the achievement with a small clip from the DC, Warner Bros animation teams, played in classic Annecy celebration mode.
Safran, who attended Annecy this year for the first time, underlined how much the event exceeded his expectations. He said, “Everyone in the team kept talking to me about it. Know I understand why.”
With the slate laying out anime. adult animation. and family programming side by side. the subtext from the stage felt clear: DC and Warner Bros. Animation are treating Annecy not as a stop on the calendar. but as a launchpad—one that signals how seriously they’re taking their next wave of characters.
As the night moved on and the audience kept reacting to every announcement, the question wasn’t whether these projects would arrive. It was how soon the next one would top the last.
And for Safran, at least, the trip already seemed to have an afterlife in the imagination. “Might very well have booked his 2027 plane ticket already,” the presentation’s tone suggested.
DC Studios Warner Bros. Animation Annecy Joker: Laugh Riot Absolute Batman Krypto Scott Snyder Nick Dragotta Yasuhiro Aoki C.H. Greenblatt Batman: Caped Crusader Get Jiro Teen Titans Go Mister Miracle Tom King
Wait so Joker’s getting another cartoon? Lol.
I don’t even understand why they’d make an anime Joker thing when Batman already has like 9,000 shows. Also “Absolute Batman” sounds like it’s just gonna be the same story but darker? Idk.
So they’re doing anime now like it’s a new direction, but aren’t they just copying what Crunchyroll is doing? And Annecy is in France so does that mean it’s gonna be dubbed in French first? I’m confused how “Laugh Riot” relates to anything Joker ever did.
Adult Batman I guess. Cool. But I feel like they keep calling everything “next-up” forever and then it vanishes. Like I saw something about an “anime series” and thought it was gonna be a movie. Also teaming up with Sola Entertainment… never heard of them so hopefully they don’t mess up the art style.