Mackenyu and Tetsuo Kurata Headline Anime NYC 2026 Guest Lineup

Anime NYC will host live-action One Piece actor Mackenyu, Kamen Rider Black star Tetsuo Kurata, and Kiki's Delivery Service author Eiko Kadono as guests at its August 20-23 run. The convention takes place at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center in New York and is the east coast's largest anime event by attendance.

Who's attending

Mackenyu is making his first North American convention appearance. He portrays Roronoa Zoro in the Netflix live-action One Piece series and Arata Wataya in the live-action Chihayafuru films. The convention confirmed he will participate in a panel and paid autograph sessions across the weekend.

Tetsuo Kurata played Kotaro Minami in the original Kamen Rider Black television series and returned to the role for later Kamen Rider films. Kurata also performed multiple franchise theme songs. He will meet fans at the Tokuspirits x U7Media x Muteki Sales booth rather than through the convention's primary autograph queue.

Eiko Kadono wrote the 1985 Kiki's Delivery Service novel that inspired Studio Ghibli's 1989 animated film, directed by Hayao Miyazaki. Her appearance marks one of the first major North American convention bookings of a Ghibli-adjacent original author.

The wider guest lineup

Anime NYC also confirmed Mokochan, a director on the new Ghost in the Shell anime adaptation from Science SARU. Black Torch editor Shihei Lin and manga creator Tsuyoshi Takaki are attending as a pair. Singer yama, who performs for the Daemons of the Shadow Realm anime, and actor Toshihide Wakamatsu from Chojin Sentai Jetman round out the initial slate.

The convention typically adds guests in rolling waves between its spring announcement and the August event. Prior Anime NYC editions have hosted voice actors, manga creators, and director-level talent across the weekend, and the 2026 guest list is on pace to match prior years.

Format and programming

Anime NYC's August run spans four days, with programming typically including panels, autograph sessions, cosplay contests, screenings, and industry panels with publishers and streaming platforms. Attendance has grown steadily since the convention's 2017 launch, with recent editions each drawing over 60,000 attendees.

India and global context

Anime NYC does not offer regional attendance discounts for international fans, but the convention has previously livestreamed industry panels globally. Fans in India can typically catch key announcements through the platform partners' own channels in the days following the event. Crunchyroll, Viz Media, Aniplex of America, and Bandai Namco Entertainment have all held press events at prior Anime NYC editions, and those same platforms run India-facing announcement windows that track the US convention cycle.

What to watch

The August guest list will continue to build between now and the event. Mackenyu's presence is the headline draw for live-action One Piece fans, while Kurata's attendance carries significant weight for the tokusatsu fandom that has historically traveled internationally for Kamen Rider appearances.