The 'Cuphead' DLC Finally Has a Release Date, but What About the Animated Show?

As a shining pillar in the realm of indie gaming, the reputation of 2017's Cuphead is nothing short of astounding. Its unique art style — which hearkens back to black-and-white cartoons of yesteryear — has garnered this run-and-gun platformer critical acclaim and several accolades. With its distinct cartoon style, it's practically destined to become an animated series. In fact, one was announced a while ago. So ... where the heck is it?

After a bout of radio silence from the team at Studio MDHR, the original game's long-awaited DLC, "The Delicious Last Course" was finally featured at the 2021 Game Awards. Announced back in 2018 and delayed by both avoiding crunch culture and later by the COVID-19 pandemic, the new batch of levels and bosses was given a release date of June 30, 2022. While a release date for the DLC will undoubtedly sate fans of the game, the animated series has been MIA for some time. Is it still coming out?

Cuphead follows the brash and spunky titular character and his brother, Mugman. While on a hot streak at a seedy casino run by the Devil, Cuphead bets it all on a high-risk, high reward game of craps with his and Mugman's souls on the line. Of course, the Devil has his due after Cuphead loses the bet. As the young brothers beg for their lives, the Devil strikes them a deal. If they can collect the contracts from other debtors who owe their souls to him, he'll let Cuphead and Mugman off the hook.

Since its 2017 release, the game has received universal acclaim. Its creative hand-drawn style, unique characters and soundtrack, and pulse-pounding gameplay achieved high marks. At the 2017 Game Awards, Cuphead won several categories including "Best Independent Game." The game also generated its own culture of gamers hollering over the game's frenetic boss battles and relentless difficulty.

Of course, with its purposefully cartoony style, Cuphead seems like the perfect fit for an animated show. In July 2019, Netflix announced The Cuphead Show! was coming, and Studio MDHR was set to work on the show. By now, it's been a long time in the making, but it has cast its stars and a release date is at least on the horizon.

In June 2020, much of the main cast was announced. Cuphead will be portrayed Tru Valentino and his brother Mugman will be voiced by Frank Todaro. The antagonistic Devil will be voiced by Luke Millington-Drake. In June 2021, a short official clip was released that confirmed Wayne Brady being cast as King Dice, the Devil's right-hand man in the casino.

Despite its long-production schedule, undoubtedly upended by the ongoing pandemic, the show is set to come out. According to a Netflix blog post from November 2021, The Cuphead Show! is currently scheduled to start streaming in 2022. While there's no specific date attached to it yet, 2022 looks to be the year of the Cup.

Cuphead is currently available on PC, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One.