Much to the dismay of all the devoted Yuri!!! On Ice fans, Studio MAPPA officially canceled the highly anticipated Yuri!!! On Ice the Movie: ICE ADOLESCENCE on April 19, 2024. The production team confirmed the cancellation by releasing an apology notice on the anime’s official Twitter and website.
The production staff explained that the cancellation was “unanimously decided” by staff and committee members following their internal discussions due to “various circumstances.”
The fans have been barely holding onto the thread of hope after being kept on edge for so long. However, the cancellation news shot down the last bit of hope, sending shockwaves across the fandom.
Why Did ICE ADOLESCENCE Get Cancelled?
After the film’s official announcement in April 2017, its production has faced countless delays. The movie was initially set to release in 2019, and a teaser trailer was released along with a release date, but it got delayed.
It was announced that the delay was to “scale up the content more than originally planned” and that it was still in production. However, things started looking grim for the film’s status when MAPPA’s CEO commented on the lower-than-expected revenue generated by the anime.
Considering the anime’s massive fanbase, his comment offended several fans, as Yuri!!! On Ice was one of MAPPA’s biggest hits before they took on other big projects.
In 2020, MAPPA production staff announced that the film’s production was “still ongoing” and hadn’t yet “reached the stage where we announce a release date.”
Fans were already losing hope by this point, and then we got no further news about the movie’s status. Now, the official confirmation of Yuri!!! On Ice the Movie: ICE ADOLESCENCE’s Cancellation has been announced.
The Impact of Yuri!!! On Ice
Yuri!!! On Ice‘s success is what set MAPPA apart as an animation studio. MAPPA was praised for its high-quality production and for having the courage to portray LGBTQ+ themes in its projects, which were still very controversial back in 2016.
Yuri!!! On Ice became the most tweeted about anime during its run, and it was being talked about, referenced, and loved by Olympic athletes worldwide. The anime has impacted a whole generation of anime fans, which is apparent by the amount of them who waited patiently for the movie’s release for seven years, not losing hope.
To everyone’s disappointment, despite everything that the creation of Yuri!!! On Ice did for MAPPA, it just ended up becoming a part of MAPPA’s long list of controversies.
Are Other MAPPA Projects To Blame?
In their disappointment and frustration at the cancellation, fans have taken to point fingers at other successful MAPPA projects that are taking priority over Yuri!!! On Ice the Movie: ICE ADOLESCENCE.
After delaying Yuri!!! On Ice the Movie: ICE ADOLESCENCE in 2019, Jujutsu Kaisen released in 2020, and we all know how that went. Yuri!!! On Ice was the first ever MAPPA project that got the Studio the recognition it had, but in the face of the success of Jujutsu Kaisen, the latter clearly took priority.
Season 2 of Jujutsu Kaisen just finished airing with season 3 already in production, which is getting Jujutsu Kaisen heat from disappointed fans. The fans cannot be blamed, as anyone would be heartbroken after receiving tragic news after looking forward to something for seven whole years.
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