The Hollywood Creative Alliance nominated six anime series for Best Anime Series at the 2026 Astra TV Awards, with Witch Hat Atelier leading across multiple categories.
The Hollywood Creative Alliance has revealed the nominees for the 2026 Astra TV Awards, and six anime series earned spots in the Best Anime Series category. The ceremony is scheduled for August 15 in Los Angeles.
The Best Anime Series nominees span multiple streaming platforms and showcase the breadth of anime hitting global audiences this year. The six nominees are:
Witch Hat Atelier (Crunchyroll)
Sakamoto Days (Netflix)
Steel Ball Run: JoJo's Bizarre Adventure (Netflix)
Dandelion (Netflix)
Mao (Hulu)
Rooster Fighter (Adult Swim)
Netflix dominates the category with three of the six nominees, while Crunchyroll, Hulu, and Adult Swim each secured one slot. The diversity of platforms reflects how widely anime distribution has spread across the streaming landscape.
Beyond the series-level nomination, Witch Hat Atelier picked up additional recognition in the voice-over performance categories. Anjali Kunapaneni earned a nomination for Best Lead Voice Over Performance in a Series for her role as Coco, while Joshua Waters received a Best Supporting Voice Over Performance nod for his portrayal of Qifrey. Patrick Seitz also earned a lead voice-over nomination for his work as Keiji in Rooster Fighter, giving the anime slate a strong presence outside the dedicated anime category.
These voice-over nominations place anime performers alongside live-action voice work, a sign of anime's growing prestige within broader television awards conversations.
The Astra TV Awards are administered by the Hollywood Creative Alliance, formerly known as the Hollywood Critics Association. The organization comprises critics, journalists, actors, producers, publicists, writers, and other entertainment industry professionals. A nominating committee of 50 HCA members selected this year's nominees across all categories.
The Astras recognize content across broadcast, cable, and streaming platforms, with ensemble categories divided by distribution type. The HCA also administers the Astra Film Awards, Astra Creative Arts Awards, and Astra Podcast Awards.
Anime has established a consistent presence at the Astra awards in recent years. Dragon Ball Daima took home the Best Anime Series prize at the 2025 ceremony, and the Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Infinity Castle film received an honorary award at the 2026 Astra Film Awards earlier this January. The six-nominee slate this year matches the category's expanding recognition of the medium.
For fans in India, several of the nominated titles are accessible on local streaming platforms. Sakamoto Days, Steel Ball Run, and Dandelion are all available on Netflix India, while Witch Hat Atelier streams on Crunchyroll, which is accessible in the region. Mao and Rooster Fighter have more limited availability in the Indian market.
The 2026 Astra TV Awards ceremony takes place on August 15 in Los Angeles. Dragon Ball Daima will look to defend its title against a competitive field that includes some of the year's most talked-about anime adaptations.
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