2016 in animation
2016 in animation is an overview of notable events, including notable awards, list of films released, television show debuts and endings, and notable deaths.
Events
January
January 15: The tenth & final season of The Fairly OddParents begins on Nickelodeon with the premiere of the half-hour special "The Big Fairy Share Scare!", which introduces the show's new main character Chole Carmichael.January 25: Season 13 of American Dad! begins on TBS with the premiere of the episode "Roots". The season's premiere was seen by over 1 million viewers that night.February
February 2: The 14th The Land Before Time film Journey of the Brave is released after a nine-year gap from The Wisdom of Friends in 2007 as Universal Animation Studios would conclude the franchise afterwards.February 6: 43rd Annie AwardsFebruary 15: The final episode of Gravity Falls, "Weirdmageddon 3: Take Back the Falls", premiered on Disney XD to universal acclaim.February 28: 88th Academy Awards:- * Inside Out by Pete Docter and Jonas Rivera wins the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature.
- * Bear Story by Pato Escala Pierart and Gabriel Osorio Vargas wins the Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film.
March
March 4:- * Zootopia is released by Walt Disney Studios.
- * Disney XD greenlights two new animated shows for its network, Country Club & Billy Dilly's Super-Duper Subterranean Summer.March 31: HIT Entertainment Absorbed into Mattel Creations, name currently used for licensing purposes only.
April
- April 4: The first episode of The Powerpuff Girls reboot premieres to mixed-to-negative reviews.
- April 11: The Powerpuff Girls episode "Bye Bye, Bellum" airs. This marks the confirmed removal of Sara Bellum, which angered fans of the original 1998 series.
May
May 2: The first episode of The Loud House airs.May 20: The Angry Birds Movie is released.May 22:- * The Simpsons concludes its 27th season on Fox with the episode "Orange Is the New Yellow". The season's finale was seen by over 3.2 million viewers that night.
- * Family Guy concludes its 14th season on Fox with the episode "Road to India", featuring the following Indian guest stars: Barkhad Abdi, Aseem Batra, Jay Chandrasekhar, Anil Kapoor, Dan Nainan, Russell Peters, Sendhil Ramamurthy, Sheetal Sheth. The season's finale was seen by nearly 2.6 million viewers that night.
- * Bob's Burgers concludes its sixth season on Fox with the episode "Glued, Where's My Bob?", featuring the following guest stars: Rob Huebel, Kumail Nanjiani, and Keegan-Michael Key. The season's finale was seen by over 2 million viewers that night.
June
June 10: Camp Camp premieres on Rooster Teeth.June 11: The final episode of the original BoBoiBoy series.June 15: Rock Dog premiered at the Shanghai International Film Festival, followed by its Chinese theatrical run in July.June 27: American Dad! concludes its 13th season on TBS with the episode "Standard Deviation". The season's finale was watched by only 984 thousand viewers that night, marking a new low in the show's viewership.June 30: The Teen Titans Go! episode "TTG v PPG" premieres on Cartoon Network, it is a crossover with The Powerpuff Girls (2016).July
July 11: Season 2 of Star vs. the Forces of Evil begins on Disney XD with the premiere of the episodes "My New Wand!/Ludo in the Wild"July 20: The Haunted House debuts on Tooniverse in South Korea.August
August 1–5: The five-part Teen Titans Go! mini-series titled "Island Adventures" airs on Cartoon Network.August 12: Sausage Party is released as the first full-length computer-animated feature film to be rated R.September
September 1: Season 5 of The Amazing World of Gumball begins on Cartoon Network, with the premiere of the episode "The Stories".September 14: Season 20 of South Park begins on Comedy Central with the premiere of the episode "Member Berries".September 23: Storks by Nicholas Stoller and Doug Sweetland premieres.September 25:- * Season 7 of Bob's Burgers begins on Fox with the premiere of the episode "Flu-ouise". The season's premiere was seen by exactly 2.6 million viewers that night.
- * Season 28 of The Simpsons begins on Fox with the premiere of the episode "Monty Burns' Fleeing Circus", guest starring Adventure Time creator Pendleton Ward. The season's premiere was seen by over 3.3 million viewers that night.
- * Season 15 of Family Guy begins on Fox with the premiere of the episode "The Boys in the Band". The season's premiere was seen by 2.8 million viewers that night.
- ** Amy Schumer guest stars in all 3 episodes.
- September 26: The eighth & final season of Regular Show begins on Cartoon Network with the premiere of the episodes "One Space Day at a Time" and "Cool Bro Bots". The season's premiere was seen by over 1.1 million viewers that night.
October
October 1: The series finale of Mixels, "Nixel, Nixel Go Away", premiered on Cartoon Network.October 3: Milo Murphy's Law premieres on Disney XD.October 10: The first episode of Grizzy & the Lemmings airs.October 12: 2016 becomes the first year where two animated films gross over $1 billion: Zootopia and Finding Dory.October 13: Teen Titans Go! concludes its third season on Cartoon Network with the episode "The Cape", which is a redubbed version of the Teen Titans episode "Divide and Conquer".October 16: The SimpsonsNovember
November 7: Season 14 of American Dad! begins on TBS with the premiere of the episode "Father's Daze". The season's premiere was seen by exactly 1 million viewers that night.November 8: The Loud House concludes its first season on Nickelodeon with the episode "Snow Bored". The season's finale was seen by over 1.7 million viewers that night.November 9: Season 2 of The Loud House begins on Nickelodeon with the premiere of the episode "Intern for the Worse". The season's premiere was seen by 1.7 million viewers that night.November 23: Moana by Walt Disney Animation Studios is released.December
December 7: South Park concludes its 20th season on Comedy Central with the episode "The End of Serialization as We Know It". It was seen by over 1.8 million viewers that night.December 14: The Lion King and Who Framed Roger Rabbit are added to the National Film Registry.Awards
- Academy Award for Best Animated Feature: Inside Out
- Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film: Bear Story
- Annecy International Animated Film Festival Cristal du long métrage: My Life as a Zucchini
- Annie Award for Best Animated Feature: Zootopia
- Asia Pacific Screen Award for Best Animated Feature Film: Seoul Station
- BAFTA Award for Best Animated Film: Kubo and the Two Strings
- César Award for Best Animated Film: The Little Prince
- European Film Award for Best Animated Film: My Life as a Zucchini
- Golden Globe Award for Best Animated Feature Film: Zootopia
- Goya Award for Best Animated Film: Birdboy: The Forgotten Children
- Japan Academy Prize for Animation of the Year: The Boy and the Beast
- Mainichi Film Awards - Animation Grand Award: ''Your Name''
Television series debuts
| Date | Title | Channel | Year |
| January 3 | Bordertown | Fox | 2016 |
| January 14 | Greatest Party Story Ever | MTV | 2016 |
| February 5 | Mack & Moxy | PBS Kids | 2016 |
| February 5 | Animals | HBO | 2016–2018 |
| February 6 | Bunnicula | Cartoon Network, Boomerang | 2016–2018 |
| February 15 | Ready Jet Go! | PBS Kids | 2016–2019 |
| February 15 | Lego Star Wars: The Resistance Rises | Disney XD | 2016 |
| February 20 | Pokémon the Series: XYZ | Cartoon Network | 2016–2017 |
| March 2 | Looped | Teletoon | 2016–2019 |
| March 4 | Lego Bionicle: The Journey to One | Netflix | 2016 |
| March 7 | Little People | Universal Kids | 2016–2018 |
| March 26 | Fangbone! | Disney XD | 2016–2017 |
| April 4 | The Powerpuff Girls | Cartoon Network | 2016–2019 |
| April 4 | Beyblade Burst | Disney XD | 2016–2017 |
| April 15 | Kong: King of the Apes | Netflix | 2016–2018 |
| May 2 | The Loud House | Nickelodeon | 2016–present |
| May 12 | Counterfeit Cat | Disney XD | 2016–2017 |
| May 20 | Harry & Bunnie | Disney Channel | 2016 |
| June 10 | Voltron: Legendary Defender | Netflix | 2016–2018 |
| June 20 | Lego Star Wars: The Freemaker Adventures | Disney XD | 2016–2017 |
| June 20 | Freaktown | Teletoon | 2016 |
| July 8 | Word Party | Netflix | 2016–2021 |
| July 10 | Brad Neely's Harg Nallin' Sclopio Peepio | Adult Swim | 2016 |
| July 18 | Atomic Puppet | Disney XD, Teletoon | 2016–2017 |
| July 22 | Elena of Avalor | Disney Channel, Disney Junior | 2016–2020 |
| July 29 | Home: Adventures with Tip & Oh | Netflix | 2016–2018 |
| August 12 | Ask the StoryBots | Netflix | 2016–2019 |
| August 13 | Regal Academy | Nickelodeon, Rai | 2016–2018 |
| August 19 | Bottersnikes and Gumbles | Netflix | 2016–2017 |
| September 2 | Kulipari | Netflix | 2016–2018 |
| September 2 | Kazoops! | Netflix | 2016–2017 |
| September 2 | The Stinky & Dirty Show | Amazon Prime Video | 2016–2019 |
| September 5 | Ranger Rob | Treehouse TV | 2016–2021 |
| September 6 | Dot. | Universal Kids, CBC | 2016–2018 |
| September 12 | The ZhuZhus | Disney Channel | 2016–2017 |
| September 14 | Legends of Chamberlain Heights | Comedy Central | 2016–2017 |
| September 19 | Right Now Kapow | Disney XD | 2016–2017 |
| October 3 | Milo Murphy's Law | Disney XD, Disney Channel | 2016–2019 |
| October 28 | Skylanders Academy | Netflix | 2016–2018 |
| November 4 | World of Winx | Netflix | 2016–2017 |
| November 7 | P. King Duckling | Disney Junior | 2016–present |
| November 8 | Rusty Rivets | Nick Jr. | 2016–2020 |
| November 23 | Splash and Bubbles | PBS Kids | 2016–2018 |
| December 8 | Clash-A-Rama: The Series | YouTube | 2016–2019 |
| December 9 | Luna Petunia | Netflix | 2016–2018 |
| December 16 | Justice League Action | Cartoon Network | 2016–2018 |
| December 23 | Trollhunters: Tales of Arcadia | Netflix | 2016–2018 |
Deaths
January
January 4:- * Frank Armitage, Australian-American painter and muralist, dies at age 91.
- * Robert Balser, American animator, producer and director, dies at age 88.January 5: Christine Lawrence Finney, American painter and animator, dies at age 47.January 6: Pat Harrington Jr., American actor, dies at age 86.January 7: Richard Libertini, American actor, dies at age 82.January 10: David Bowie, English rock singer and actor, dies at age 69.January 13: Brian Bedford, English actor, dies at age 80.January 14:
- * J.R. Horne, American actor, dies at age 72.
- * Alan Rickman, English actor and director, dies from cancer at age 69.January 19: Mike Docherty, Scottish comics artist and animator, dies at age 60.January 26:
- * Martin Lavut, Canadian actor, dies at age 81.
- * Abe Vigoda, American actor, dies at age 94.January 27: William E. Martin, American actor, dies at age 70.
February
February 3: Joe Alaskey, American actor, dies at age 63.February 6: Dan Gerson, American voice actor and screenwriter, dies at age 49.February 7: John Walker, American animator and director, dies at an unknown age.February 23: Antanas Janauskas, Lithuanian film director, designer and writer, dies at age 78.February 24: Colin Low, Canadian film director and producer, dies at age 89.February 25: Zdeněk Smetana, Czech animator, film director and graphic artist, dies at age 90.February 28: George Kennedy, American actor, dies at age 91.March
March 1: Michi Kobi, American actress, dies at age 91.March 16: Frank Sinatra Jr., American singer, songwriter, actor and conductor, dies from cardiac arrest at age 72.March 17: Larry Drake, American actor and comedian, dies at age 67.March 24: Garry Shandling, American actor and comedian, dies at age 66.March 25: Terry Brain, English animator, dies at age 60.March 28: Igor Khait, American animator and film producer, dies from pancreatic cancer at age 52.April
April 3:- * Don Francks, Canadian actor, dies at age 84.
- * Kōji Wada, Japanese singer, dies from cancer at age 42.April 6: Oto Reisinger, Croatian animator, illustrator, cartoonist and comics artist, dies at age 89.April 9: Arthur Anderson, American actor, dies at age 93.
May
May 8: William Schallert, American actor, dies at age 93.May 13: Makiko Futaki, Japanese animator and illustrator, dies at age 57.May 14: Darwyn Cooke, Canadian animator and comics artist, dies from cancer at age 53.May 19: Alan Young, English actor, dies at age 96.June
June 2: Willis Pyle, American animator, dies at age 101.June 3: Muhammad Ali, American boxer, dies at age 74.June 6: Theresa Saldana, American actress, dies from pneumonia at age 61.June 12: Janet Waldo, American actress, dies at age 97.June 19: Anton Yelchin, American actor, dies in a car accident at age 27.June 30: Gordon Murray, English puppeteer, animator, and film and television producer, dies at age 95.July
July 19: Garry Marshall, American filmmaker and actor, dies at age 81.July 24: Marni Nixon, American actress, dies at age 86.July 26: Jack Davis, American cartoonist and illustrator, dies at age 91.August
August 5: Gigi Dane, American comics, cartoons and animation scholar and editor, dies at age 66. August 14: Fyvush Finkel, American actor, dies from heart problems at age 93.August 19: Jack Riley, American actor, dies at age 80.August 25: Marvin Kaplan, American actor, dies at age 89.August 29: Gene Wilder, American actor and comedian, dies at age 83.Specific date unknown: Jukka Murtosaari, Finnish animator and comics artist, dies at age 53.September
September 1: Jon Polito, American actor, dies at age 65.'September 2: John Hostetter, American actor, dies at age 69.September 3:- * Anna Dewdney, American author and illustrator, dies at age 50.
- * Wolfgang Urchs, German director, screenwriter and animator, dies at age 94.
October
October 5: Michiyo Yasuda, Japanese animator, dies at age 77.October 8:- * Gary Dubin, American actor, dies at age 57.
- * Pierre Tchernia, French producer, screenwriter and animator, dies at age 88.October 20:
- * Michael Massee, American actor, dies from stomach cancer at age 64.
- * Achieng Abura, Kenyan singer, dies at an unknown age.October 21: Kevin Meaney, American actor and comedian, dies from a heart attack at age 60.October 25: Kevin Curran, American television writer and producer, dies from cancer at age 59.October 27: Barry Anthony Trop, American composer, dies at age 64.October 30: Tammy Grimes, American actress, dies at age 82.
November
November 4: Jean-Jacques Perrey, French electronic music performer, composer, producer and promoter, dies from lung cancer at age 87.November 19: Gino Gavioli, Italian comics artist and animator, dies at age 93.November 24:- * Al Brodax, American film and television producer, dies at age 90.
- * Florence Henderson, American actress, dies at age 82.November 25: Ron Glass, American actor, dies from respiratory failure at age 71.November 27: Eric Fredrickson, Canadian animator and storyboard artist, dies at age 54.