Evangelion Hits Criterion Channel in September—English Dub Included

Hideaki Anno's Neon Genesis Evangelion is officially landing on the Criterion Channel on September 1, marking a significant moment for one of anime's most consequential series. The full run will stream in both Japanese and English dub versions—a detail that matters: this is the first time the classic English dub has been available on a streaming platform.

Alongside the series, Criterion will host the feature films The End of Evangelion and Evangelion Death (True)², both also available in dual-language formats. GKIDS handles North American distribution for all titles.

For those unfamiliar with the 1995 original: Evangelion remains a watershed moment in anime—a psychological mecha series that deconstructed the genre while grappling with depression, identity, and the weight of expectation. It's the kind of show that rewarded obsessive rewatching and spawned two decades of debate. The English dub, recorded in the late 1990s, has its own cult following, and its absence from streaming has been a persistent gap in the series' availability.

Criterion's curation typically signals serious archival intent, and this release reflects that. The channel has become a destination for prestige anime—it's where Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex, The Garden of Words, and K-On! The Movie live. Adding Evangelion to that roster is less a surprise than a confirmation of what fans already knew: this series belongs in that conversation.

The September 1 date gives you a month to clear your schedule. Whether you're revisiting it or encountering it for the first time, having both language tracks available means you can experience it as different audiences did—and that flexibility is rare enough to matter.

Source: IGN