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NYCC 2025: Lion Forge Entertainment Unveils an Iyanu Season 2 Clip and 2026 Launch

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Just in time for Day 3 of New York Comic Con 2025, Lion Forge Entertainment has dropped an exclusive sneak-peek clip from Season 2 of Iyanu, the Cartoon Network and HBO Max animated series inspired by Yoruba mythology. It was also announced that Season 2 of Iyanu will premiere in spring 2026 on Cartoon Network and HBO Max, promising new battles, new wonders, and more secrets of Yorubaland.

The clip teases The Chosen’s next great trial, as Iyanu (voiced by Serah Johnson) and Team 

Chosen face the return of Zaza and the People of the Deep,  the most dangerous faction in all of Yorubaland — led by the formidable and charismatic Queen Adura. But this time, Iyanu is guided by her knowledge of the Divine Ones, empowered by new abilities, and disciplined through training in the Way of the Golden Leaf,  a dynamic fighting style inspired by Capoeira and taught to her by Olori (voiced by Adesua Etomi-Wellington). Every lesson and every battle has prepared her for this moment. 

Based on the graphic novel series Iyanu: Child of Wonder by Roye Okupe, who also serves as creator, showrunner, and executive producer of the series, Iyanu follows a teenage orphan who discovers her divine powers and her destiny to save the ancient kingdom of Yorubaland. 

Produced by Lion Forge Entertainment, a leading Black-owned entertainment studio in North America, the series has become a breakout hit: it’s a Top 10 Kids and Family title on HBO Max, it was No. 1 in the Kids 6–12 category during its first month on Cartoon Network in April, and remains the #1 Kids and Family title on Showmax across 44 African countries. It’s also running on ITVX in the UK and streaming on ABCiview in Australia. 

Season Two will return with 10 new episodes where we’ll see Iyanu continue to master her divine powers as she finds herself in the midst of a fierce conflict between Elu and the People of the Deep, led by the formidable Adura. With various factions of Yorubaland vying for powerful divine artifacts that have reemerged, Iyanu strives to find a way to end the battle and restore peace. As Team Chosen reunites and tensions rise between old allies and foes, Iyanu must confront even more powerful threats from the Age of Wonders  including secrets buried deep within her own past. 

Fans can revisit the story that started, all of Season 1 including the season-finale movie special 

Iyanu: The Age of Wonders, which is streaming on HBO Max (U.S.). In addition, the official Iyanu Shop is now open at shop.iyanutheseries.com, offering fans exclusive apparel, and collectibles. 

An All-Nigerian voice cast has been unveiled for Iyanu based on the comic from Roye Okupe and YouNeek Studios

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Cartoon Network and Max have announced the all-Nigerian cast for Iyanu, the epic superhero animated-series steeped in Nigerian culture and mythology. A Lion Forge Entertainment production, Iyanu is an adaptation of Dark Horse Comics/YouNeek Studios’ graphic novel series Iyanu: Child of Wonder by award-winning Nigerian creator and producer Roye Okupe.

Leading the voice cast is Serah Johnson as Iyanu, a teenage heroine who must uncover the mystery behind her newfound powers to save her people from an ancient curse threatening to destroy humanity. Johnson, known for her extensive voiceover work within the animation industry and audiobooks, is the first Nigerian and African to win the Society of Voice Arts Award (SOVAS) for Outstanding Animation Character – Film or TV – Best African VoiceOver for her work on “Moji.”

In Addition to Johnson, Iyanu is made up of promising new talent along with experienced and esteemed actors including TV personality and City People Award winner for Fast Rising Male Actor Okey Jude (“Hotel Labamba,” “The Governor’s Daughter”) who joins the cast as Biyi, Iyanu’s carefree adventurer friend. Recognized as the official IVR (Interactive Voice Response) on Nigeria’s largest telecommunications network MTN between 2013 and 2015, Jude also earned an Africa Choice Awards nomination for “The Most Promising Male Movie Star of 2022.” Samuel Kugbiyi, a multifaceted artist with a career spanning from childhood, comes on board as Iyanu’s bookworm friend Toye. Noteworthy among Kugbiyi’s creative endeavors is the acclaimed musical drama “Tafiya Lafiya: The Journey,” where he was both a writer and performer.

African Movie Academy Awards winner and Nollywood actress Adesua Etomi-Wellington (“King of Boys,” “Gangs of Lagos”) will voice Olori, who Vogue named as one of their 14 global superstars in 2019 alongside Scarlett Johansson, Deepika Padukone and Vanessa Kirby; set to play Toye’s father Kanfo is one of Nollywood’s foremost leading men Blossom Chukwujekwu (“Falling,” “Stolen Lives”) who is celebrated with multiple wins and nominations across Nigeria’s award shows like the Africa Magic Viewers’ Choice Awards, Best Of Nollywood Awards, Golden Movies Awards, among others; Nigerian- born entertainer and author of “Màmá, It’s A Girl” Stella Damasus (“Gone”) is set to play Sewa; Shaffy Bello (“The Score,” “Battleground”), a Best of Nollywood Awards nominee, has signed on to voice Emi – The One Mother; and esteemed actor Ike Ononye (“Doc Martin,” “The Lovers”) is Elder Alapani.

Iyanu is a superhero tale set in the magical kingdom of Yorubaland, which draws from Nigerian culture, music and mythology. Drawing deeply from the rich tapestry of Yoruba people, the animated series follows a teenage orphan girl, Iyanu, who spends her days studying history and ancient arts but yearns for a normal life. One day, responding to danger, she unknowingly triggers her divine powers, the likes of which have not been seen since the Age of Wonders. With newly discovered superpowers, Iyanu joins forces with two other teenagers, Biyi and Toye, as they embark on a remarkable journey to discover the truth about the evil lurking in her homeland. Throughout her adventure, she’ll uncover the truth about her past, her parents, and her ultimate destiny to save the world.

Iyanu is slated for release in the US on Cartoon Network and Max in 2025 and has a 26 episode, two season order.

Brandon Easton (Transformers: War for Cybertron: Seige, Marvel’s Agent Carter) headed the writers’ room, with Roye Okupe serving as the executive producer, writer, and director on multiple episodes. The show’s Executive producers are David Steward II and Matt Heath from Lion Forge Entertainment, Erica Dupuis of Impact X Capital, Ryan Haidarian of Forefront Media Group and Doug Schwalbe.