Minecraft is getting an animated Netflix series unrelated to WB Pictures’ live-action movie

So, there’s a Minecraft live-action movie (somehow) coming to cinemas next year. But, check this out, now we’ve also learned that Netflix and Mojang are working alongside WildBrain (Sonic Prime) on an original animated series.

As the gaming-related TV and movie hits keep piling up, Hollywood continues to double down on the interactive medium as the next source of cool stories with mainstream appeal, since comic book adaptations aren’t super safe bets anymore. Of course, we all know it comes down to quality and market saturation (or lack of), but hey, corporations love their trend-surfing, so let them try whatever.

The small teaser, creeper included, arrived on May 30 via Netflix and Minecraft’s social media channels, and while a release window wasn’t shared, the traditional ‘coming soon’ outro is present in the announcement, suggesting it may be releasing on the platform sooner rather than later.

This isn’t the first time Netflix has hosted a Minecraft story for the whole family, as Telltale Games’ Minecraft: Story Mode, an episodic point-and-click video game, was ported to the platform in late 2018. Following the closure of Telltale, the Netflix release of the game was removed in late 2022. While the company was quickly relaunched, Story Mode never returned to Netflix. Who knows, maybe it’ll come back ahead of the series’ release.

As far as everyone knows, this new series isn’t connected in any way to Warner Bros. Pictures and Legendary Pictures’ ambitious take on the franchise, which recently wrapped filming and has an impressive cast that includes Jack Black, Jason Momoa, Danielle Brooks, Emma Myers, Jennifer Coolidge, Kate McKinnon, and Jemaine Clement.

That adaptation is being directed by Jared Hess (Napoleon Dynamite) from a screenplay by Chris Bowman and Hubbel Palmer (Middle School: The Worst Years of My Life). We’re still clueless about how it’ll look and feel, but we wouldn’t be surprised if Warner ends up having another Barbie-sized hit in its hands, given how massive Minecraft continues to be nearly 13 years after its full release.