Forget ‘Cyberpunk: Edgerunners,’ This Legendary Sci-Fi Thriller Is Coming to a New Streamer
Neon Genesis Evangelion, widely regarded as one of the greatest and most influential anime series ever made, is coming to a new streaming home. According to Polygon, the groundbreaking mecha series will launch on The Criterion Channel on 1 September 2026, through a partnership with North American distributor GKIDS, giving the show a fresh platform decades after it first aired.
First broadcast between October 1995 and March 1996, the 26-episode series follows a reluctant teenage boy recruited by his estranged father to pilot a biomechanical weapon against monstrous "Angels" in a post-apocalyptic 2015. The Criterion Channel's collection will include the original series in both Japanese and English dubs (the latter streaming officially for the first time), plus two related films: the 1998 recap feature Evangelion: Death (True)² and the acclaimed 1997 alternate ending, The End of Evangelion. The series holds a 100% Certified Fresh score on Rotten Tomatoes and an 89% audience rating, reflecting its enduring critical and commercial success.
- Neon Genesis Evangelion streams on The Criterion Channel from 1 September 2026
- Deal struck with distributor GKIDS includes series and two films
- English dub debuts officially for the first time on streaming
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Neon Genesis Evangelion is a Japanese animated series from the mid-1990s that helped define the "mecha" genre, in which teenagers pilot giant robot-like machines to fight monstrous threats. It has since become one of the most celebrated and discussed anime titles worldwide, admired for blending action with introspective, psychologically complex storytelling rather than straightforward heroics.
Streaming rights to older anime series often move between platforms over time, and this is the latest such shift for Evangelion, arriving via The Criterion Channel and distributor GKIDS. The deal brings together the original 26-episode run alongside two related films that expand or reinterpret its story, and includes an officially streamed English dub for the first time.
The show matters to this story because its critical reputation and devoted fanbase make any change to its availability notable for anime viewers and streaming services alike, reflecting the ongoing demand for classic anime titles on Western platforms.