League of Legends is paying tribute to Arcane with its first 2025 content season, "Welcome to Noxus," raising hopes that a TV spin-off is coming.
After teases of League's colorful world, fans got to dive into the deep end of its Runeterran lore thanks to Netflix's animated Arcane series, which recently completed its second and final season on the streamer.
As Arcane picked up steam, it slowly crept into Riot's hit free-to-play title, bringing some of its original characters and story beats to the ever-popular multiplayer game, including introducing Mel and Ambessa Medarda.
Is Welcome to Noxus Part of Arcane?
A new League of Legends cinematic confused fans about whether it has anything to do with Netflix's Arcane.
The five-minute video titled "Welcome to Noxus" features Arcane original character Mel Medara making her way to her home nation of Noxus, as teased at the end of Arcane Season 2 (read more about Mel's Arcane finale tease).
Making matters even more confounding for audiences, the cinematic is animated in a style almost identical to that of the Netflix series and seems to come from Arcane animation studio Fortiche.
While some may take this to mean that "Welcome to Noxus" is the next spin-off TV series set in Arcane, that does not seem to be the case—or at least this video is not here to promote it.
Instead, the trailer is a cinematic/music video promoting the upcoming first content season of League of Legends. This season will include the introduction of Mel (who was previously an original Arcane creation) as a playable League champion.
This is nothing new for Fortiche, either. Long before the studio produced the critically acclaimed Arcane series, it partnered with Riot Games several times for League of Legends cinematics/music videos to promote the game.
It is worth noting that the "Welcome to Noxus" cinematic features Mel's Arcane Season 2 design and some significant redesigns for characters like LeBlanc and Vladamir.
So, while this is not technically a first look at an Arcane spin-off, there is the chance that these slight character tweaks could have essentially given fans a first look at what these characters could look like if a Noxus spin-off is greenlit.
Is an Arcane Spin-off TV Show Coming?
While this particular "Welcome to Noxus" cinematic has nothing to do with a potential Arcane spin-off, it does not mean all hope is lost for more of the hit animated series.
Arcane wrapped up its two-season story in November 2024, bringing its tale of class conflict and found family to an epic Avengers: Endgame-like conclusion. However, it left a few threads hanging (like the fate of fan-favorite character Jinx), leaving the door open for a potential follow-up.
Leading into the Arcane Season 2 finale, the Fortiche team was reportedly hard at work on several spin-off projects.
Arcane co-creator Christian Linke went as far as to reveal the next spinoff series had "already [been] in development for about a year" and would focus on the Runterria regions of "Noxus, Ionia, and Demacia."
The Arcane team has not divulged many details beyond that, but if a spin-off is coming, a Noxian adventure centered on Mel (like the one teased in the "Welcome to Noxus" cinematic) seems like the logical next step.
It may not be that easy, though. 2024 ended with reports that Arcane was viewed as a "financial mess" for Riot Games and, thus, has recently "scaled back" its TV and film plans.
This could mean that, despite previous teases, any plans for a TV follow-up may have been shuttered or at least altered, meaning it could be some time before fans see or hear anything from the League of Legends TV universe.
Arcane Seasons 1 and 2 are streaming on Netflix.
