It’s one of those “wait, what?” pop culture moments that actually make perfect sense once you sit with it. Disney’s upcoming original animated feature Hexed — the studio’s big Thanksgiving 2026 release — took direct inspiration from Chainsaw Man. Not for the gore or the devils or the horny chainsaw boy, but for something more fundamental: its wild expressiveness, cartoonier proportions, and that unmistakable energy of a world that feels alive and just a little unhinged.
In a recent Cartoon Brew interview, directors Fawn Veerasunthorn and Jason Hand were refreshingly direct about it. Hand mentioned watching the anime with his 15-year-old son and being struck by how Chainsaw Man does “all kinds of crazy things with his eyes.” They wanted some of that same freedom for Hexed, just dialed down to something subtler and more Disney-appropriate. Veerasunthorn added that because this was an original story (not a sequel or IP-driven project), they saw it as a chance to “get cartoonier” — bolder colors, exaggerated character proportions, and a world that leans into caricature and personality rather than safe realism.
The result, at least from the teaser, looks like a Disney movie that actually wants to feel like animation again. Bright, chaotic, a little dangerous. And yes, the lead character Billie (voiced by Hailee Steinfeld) carries that same sparkly-chaotic energy Denji brings to Chainsaw Man — just with witch powers instead of chainsaws.
The Story Beneath the Revving: Why Chainsaw Man Actually Has Depth
Before we talk awards and industry shifts, let’s give Chainsaw Man its due — because it’s way more than “edgy shonen with gore.” Tatsuki Fujimoto’s manga (and its 2022 MAPPA anime) follows Denji, a dirt-poor orphan so deep in debt he’s basically a slave to the yakuza. His only real companion is Pochita, a small Chainsaw Devil who looks like an adorable dog but is actually one of the most powerful beings in a world where devils embody human fears (guns, darkness, future, etc.).
After a brutal betrayal, Denji merges with Pochita and becomes Chainsaw Man — a hybrid who can pull a ripcord on his chest and turn his head and arms into revving chainsaws. He gets recruited into Public Safety’s devil-hunting division, where he meets a cast of complicated characters (the stoic Aki, the chaotic fiend Power, and the enigmatic, god-like Makima) and gets thrown into increasingly insane, violent, and emotionally devastating situations.
What makes it special isn’t the power scaling or the fights (though those are phenomenal). It’s how Fujimoto uses this ridiculous premise to explore very real, very human things:
Poverty and exploitation as identity-shapers. Denji’s “dreams” are painfully small because he’s never had anything: a decent meal, a warm bed, a girlfriend, a normal life. The series constantly asks what happens to someone whose desires were formed by deprivation.
The emptiness of getting what you want. Some of the most quietly devastating moments come when Denji actually gets a taste of normalcy… and it doesn’t fill the hole he thought it would.
Love, manipulation, and found family. Denji is desperate to be loved and easy to manipulate because of it. The series is brutal about how people (and systems) exploit that vulnerability.
What it actually means to stay human. In a world of contracts, devils, and violence, Denji keeps clinging to small, messy pieces of his humanity even as everything tries to strip it away.
The absurdity of existence. Fujimoto mixes body horror, dark comedy, existential dread, and genuine tenderness in ways that feel completely unique. It deconstructs shonen power fantasies while still delivering some of the most inventive action in anime/manga.
The Reze Arc (now an acclaimed theatrical movie) is peak Chainsaw Man — a tragic, romantic, politically messy story about two broken people from opposite sides of a conflict who find something real in each other, even if only for a moment. It’s the kind of storytelling that sticks with you.
The 2026 Oscar Snub That Says a Lot
Here’s where it gets extra pointed. In 2025/early 2026, Chainsaw Man: The Movie – Reze Arc dropped and was widely considered one of the best animated films of its year — massive critical love, huge audience scores, Letterboxd darling status. It should have been a lock for Best Animated Feature consideration.
It got completely snubbed.
So did Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle Arc. The Academy nominated KPop Demon Hunters, Zootopia 2, and other safer, more traditional Western fare instead. This isn’t new — the Oscars have a long, well-documented history of ignoring or heavily limiting non-Ghibli anime in the category. Only one non-Ghibli anime has ever been nominated. Ever.
And yet… the week (or month) that discourse was happening about the snub, we got directors at Disney Animation casually name-dropping Chainsaw Man as a stylistic north star for their next original movie.
That’s the real story.
What This Actually Means for Animation
Hexed taking cues from Chainsaw Man isn’t just a fun trivia fact. It’s evidence of something bigger: anime’s expressive, high-personality, “cartoonier” approach is actively reshaping Western animation from the inside. We’ve seen it in Invincible, My Adventures with Superman, KPop Demon Hunters, and now at Disney itself. Studios are realizing that playing it safe with realistic proportions and muted energy isn’t the only (or even best) way to make animation feel magical and alive.
Chainsaw Man proved audiences will embrace something weird, dark, funny, tragic, and stylistically bold all at once. Disney’s directors clearly took notes — and they’re applying them to a story about a prickly teen girl discovering she’s a witch in a dangerous, colorful magical world. The through-line is there: young protagonists with chaotic energy navigating supernatural chaos, worlds that feel dangerous and vibrant, and animation that isn’t afraid to push design and expression.
The Bottom Line
Chainsaw Man didn’t need an Oscar to matter. Its influence is already showing up in places the Academy would never expect. Denji — this traumatized, chainsaw-headed kid who just wants toast and a hug while the world tries to break him — helped push one of the biggest animation studios toward bolder, weirder, more alive storytelling.
That’s a different kind of win.
Hexed hits theaters November 2026. When you watch Billie’s expressive eyes and the colorful, slightly dangerous world of Hexe, remember the chainsaw boy who helped make it possible. The Oscars might still be playing catch-up, but the actual craft of animation is moving forward — one rev of the chainsaw (or spark of magic) at a time.
