'One Piece' anime to take three-month hiatus in 2026 as Toei confirms major schedule changes

'One Piece' will pause from January to March 2026, returning with a new fortnightly release schedule

Toei Animation has confirmed that the One Piece anime will take a three-month hiatus at the start of 2026 before returning with a new release schedule. The studio announced the update on the One Piece YouTube channel on October 28, confirming that the break will run from January to March 2026.

The long-running anime, based on Eiichiro Oda’s manga, is currently airing its 21st season, which follows Luffy’s confrontation with the Five Elders in the Egghead Island arc.

Toei explained that the extended hiatus will allow production teams additional time to improve animation quality and reduce the need for filler or recap episodes.

When the series returns in March 2026, new episodes will air every two weeks rather than weekly. According to Toei, this schedule change is designed to ease pressure on animators and ensure the story adapts the manga more faithfully without extra episodes to meet a weekly broadcast quota.

Reactions from fans have been mixed. Some viewers welcomed the change, praising Toei for prioritising quality. One fan commented on the official livestream, “Sad there won’t be weekly episodes, great we’ll be eating even greater peak every two weeks.” Others expressed frustration, with one viewer writing, “It’s been 30 years, just end the show already.”

Despite the upcoming hiatus, One Piece still has several episodes to air before the end of 2025. Episode 1148 will premiere on Crunchyroll on November 2, with Netflix subscribers gaining access a week later on November 9. The anime’s next major storyline, the Elbaph arc, will begin following its return in 2026.