Most fan projects live and die in obscurity. The original Astartes is not most fan projects. Created entirely by one person between 2018 and 2019, the short series set a benchmark for Warhammer 40,000 animation that official productions spent years trying to match. Now, its creator is back with an official sequel — and a December 2026 release has finally been confirmed.
The announcement came during the company’s Big Autumn Preview event on 18 September 2026, alongside a new trailer that gave the 40K fanbase its first real look at what is coming. The footage is brief, atmospheric, and exactly what long-time fans have been quietly hoping for since 2019. Games Workshop confirmed the December release window simultaneously.
What the New Trailer Shows
The new footage centres on a Deathwatch unit — the elite xenos-hunters drawn from multiple chapters — navigating what looks unmistakably like a Space Hulk setting: narrow, shadow-filled corridors lit only by helmet spotlights, the kind of claustrophobic atmosphere where darkness implies something horrible is waiting just beyond the frame.
Terminators appear: storm bolter barrels raised, power fists crackling, blank-visored helmets giving nothing away. At least three different chapters are represented in the trailer, alongside an unhelmeted veteran who, in the words of the official Warhammer Community post, “could certainly be described as grizzled.”
One important clarification: this trailer is not footage from the animation itself. As Games Workshop confirmed, the teaser shows a compilation representing the backstories of the five marines who will star in the series — not clips from the actual film. The real Astartes II remains unseen.
From Fan Film to Official Production: The Astartes Story
Syama Pedersen created the original series alone — one animator, no studio, no budget, producing quality that made official Warhammer animation look flat by comparison. The series followed a squad of warriors on a boarding action, and its combination of brutal economy, stunning atmosphere, and near-total absence of exposition made it feel unlike anything else in the 40K universe.
It spread rapidly through gaming communities and beyond. The company took notice of the fan work, brought Pedersen in officially, and commissioned the sequel as a proper production. The original film’s reach extended further than Warhammer+ — Saber Interactive cited it as a key reference for the look and feel of their hugely successful Space Marine 2 video game released in 2024, which itself became one of the biggest gaming launches that year.
Now with full production resources behind it, the sequel is confirmed to be “significantly longer” than the original. How much longer hasn’t been specified. Given that the first Astartes was relatively short by necessity — the natural constraint of a solo passion project — there is considerable room to expand.
Key detail: The new teaser trailer does not contain actual footage from the animation. It depicts the backstories of five featured warriors — a hint at the story, not a preview of the film itself.
Where to Watch This December
The sequel arrives in December 2026, exclusively via Warhammer+ (also called Warhammer TV), the company’s subscription-based streaming service. Existing subscribers will have access as part of their membership. The December window places it squarely in the holiday season — a strong release point for what is, by a wide margin, the most anticipated piece of Warhammer animation in recent memory.
Fan response to the trailer has been enthusiastic. The Space Hulk setting is a beloved corner of the 40K universe — the classic tabletop game of the same name still resonates with long-time hobbyists — and the Deathwatch are a compelling choice as protagonists. Their multi-chapter composition gives the story natural variety without locking the series into a single faction identity.
For anyone who has been waiting since 2019, December suddenly feels very close.
