Marvel Animation has rolled out a new intro for 2026, and the refreshed logo sequence offers an updated snapshot of where the studio is heading on Disney+. The branded intro typically plays at the start of every Marvel Animation trailer and series release. This version of it has been redesigned with a different selection of shows than the one fans got used to seeing during the studio's 2024 and 2025 run.
The new 2026 Marvel Animation intro debuted on May 27 at the front of the X-Men '97 Season 2 trailer, ahead of the show's July 1 premiere on Disney+. The updated sequence focuses on three Marvel Animation shows, all of which are confirmed to return on Disney+ in the seasons ahead. What If…? and Eyes of Wakanda, both of which appeared in earlier Marvel branding material, are absent from the new version.
The Season 2 trailer itself gives fans their first proper look at what is coming next for the X-Men. New footage picks up after the cliffhanger that closed Season 1, with the team now scattered across multiple points in time as Apocalypse sets up as the season's looming villain. Marvel Studios is also holding the show's full world premiere at the Tribeca Festival in June, ahead of its Disney+ debut on July 1.
Upcoming Projects Featured in Marvel Animation's New Intro
Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man
Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man swung onto Disney+ on January 29, 2025, becoming one of Marvel Animation's standout debuts. Hudson Thames voices Peter Parker in an alternate take on the wall-crawler's earliest days, with Charlie Cox reprising his role as Daredevil for the animated series. The show has its own continuity, separate from the live-action Spider-Man played by Tom Holland.
Marvel Animation confirmed Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man Season 2 for a Fall 2026 release at New York Comic Con in October 2025. The new episodes will introduce the symbiote, Gwen Stacy, Doctor Octopus, Chameleon, and Scorpion, while bringing back Norman and Harry Osborn. A third season has also been greenlit, with Marvel Animation planning yearly releases for the animated web-slinger. The Spidey from this continuity is one of the first characters to appear in the new Marvel Animation fanfare.
Marvel Zombies
The TV-MA spin-off Marvel Zombies dropped its four-episode first season on Disney+ in October last year. Showrunner Bryan Andrews and writer Zeb Wells expanded the world introduced in the What If…? episode "What If… Zombies?!," with the new series featuring a roster that includes Kamala Khan, Shang-Chi, Blade, Yelena Belova, and Scarlet Witch as the undead overtake the Earth.
Brad Winderbaum, head of Marvel Television and Marvel Animation, has confirmed Marvel Zombies Season 2 is in development. The first season closed with a reality-bending cliffhanger involving Kamala Khan and Wanda Maximoff, setting up the next chapter. Its place in the new Marvel Animation 2026 intro effectively means the gore-heavy corner of the studio is a big part of its long-term plans. The new fanfare features a zombified Scarlet Witch from this show levitating in the sky, showcasing her immense power.
X-Men '97
X-Men '97 is the show that introduced the original Marvel Animation logo back in early 2024, and the mutant series is now featuring the redesigned version of the intro for 2026. Two X-Men characters, Gambit and Wolverine, appear in the logo sequence. Gambit can be seen behind Wolverine, who has his claws unsheathed as they combine and make an attack. X-Men '97 Season 2 returns to Disney+ on July 1, with nine episodes that scatter the team across different points in time as they confront Apocalypse.
Beyond Season 2, Marvel Animation has already greenlit X-Men '97 Season 3, with Matthew Chauncey taking over as head writer following the exit of original showrunner Beau DeMayo. The mutants will keep their flagship status at the studio for the foreseeable future, with the series now operating on a yearly release pattern.
Marvel Animation’s New Intro Features Notable Changes From the Original
The earlier Marvel Animation intro, which first appeared in 2024 ahead of X-Men '97 Season 1, was a far more sprawling tribute to the studio's animation history. Where the new 2026 version sticks to three current shows, the previous sequence cycled through clips and imagery from a wide catalogue of Marvel animated series, some of which were produced long before Marvel Studios was founded in 1996.
The old intro centered on a metallic, chrome-finish Marvel Animation title card that moved across a series of comic book characters in a red background. Each panel showcased a different corner of Marvel's animated past. In the old sequence, we see Wolverine flash by in his iconic costume with his claws fully extended. The Wolverine clip is pulled from X-Men: The Animated Series.
The Thing from the Fantastic Four also makes a clear appearance, with an image taken from the 1994 Fantastic Four cartoon.
Spider-Man's classic red mask and black lenses from the 1960s Spider-Man show also appear, calling back to decades of animated Spidey adventures.
Another iconic animation appears in this fanfare with the Silver Surfer standing on his surfboard. The image is taken straight from the intro of Silver Surfer: The Animated Series.
The sequence then shifts to Marvel's modern animated corner with a string of shots pulled from What If…?. A zombified Captain America flashes across one panel, his skull-like face and glowing eyes taken from the Season 1 episode "What If… Zombies?!," which later inspired the standalone Marvel Zombies series.
Another frame features Uatu the Watcher, the omniscient cosmic being voiced by Jeffrey Wright, who narrates every episode of What If…?, his trademark glowing eyes peering through the imagery.
A separate shot shows Star-Lord T'Challa, the alternate-reality version of the Wakandan king who was abducted by the Ravagers as a child instead of Peter Quill.
The character was voiced by the late Chadwick Boseman in his final acting performance, in the Season 1 episode "What If… T'Challa Became a Star-Lord?" and three other episodes. The old sequence will forever remain iconic as it features many memorable shows, but the new fanfare has its appeal as well. It gives fans some insight into the shows that Marvel Animation is currently focused on.
Geraldo Amartey is a writer at The Direct. He joined the team in 2025, bringing with him four years of experience covering entertainment news, pop culture, and fan-favorite franchises for sites like YEN, Briefly and Tuko.
