Genndy Tartakovsky’s R-Rated Fixed Sets Netflix Release Date

For a while there, it seemed like Genndy Tartakovsky’s “Fixed” was going to be stuck in the pound forever.

The R-rated animated comedy, about a dog who goes on a rollicking adventure on the eve of getting neutered (think “25th Hour” meets “Lady and the Tramp”), was previewed at the Annecy International Animation Film Festival, where Tartakovsky broke down the big beats of the story, to a rapturous crowd. And now, almost two years later, it’s finally coming out.

TheWrap can exclusively reveal that “Fixed” will be released by Netflix globally on Aug. 13, 2025 in 190 countries and over 300 million households, following a splashy premiere at Annecy in June. We spoke with Tartakovsky exclusively about what happened with “Fixed” now that it has finally been adopted.

“Fixed” had an interesting production and distribution set-up, where it was technically a Sony Pictures Animation film, but it was to be released by New Line Cinema, a division of Warner Bros. Discovery. The animation was done by Renegade Animation and Lightstar Studios.

Tartakovsky had worked with Warner Bros. for years; all of his television series, including the Emmy-winning adult animated series “Primal,” have been released through TV divisions of Warner Bros. But New Line Cinema had a change of heart and instead of orphaning the movie altogether, the rights reverted to Sony.

“Fixed” was finished in October 2023, just a few months after that uproarious Annecy presentation, and it was dropped by its distributor. In some ways Tartakovsky understood Warner Bros.’ decision – “The movie is kind of a unicorn. It’s very specific – it’s 2D, it’s rated R, it’s original, all of those things that nobody wants in the industry nowadays.”

They started looking for a partner – for streaming or theatrical. In January 2024, Netflix seemed uninterested.

“I even offered to rent out a theater myself for three months and pay for it. Just give me the rights to the movie and if people start coming to see it and spread word of mouth, great. If not, then I know we had a miss,” Tartakovsky, who previously directed three hit “Hotel Transylvania” movies for Sony and wrote a fourth, said.

Earlier this year, though, something changed. Netflix’s Animation Series team, led by John Derderian, got involved. Derderian oversees adult animation for Netflix, which made more sense for his team. (The Animation Film team is focused on family-friendly titles, which is why, originally, “Fixed” didn’t seem like a good fit.) There are a number of Sony-produced animated features heading to Netflix, like this year’s “KPop Demon Hunters” and an upcoming animated “Ghostbusters” film (and series). Within a few weeks, the movie had been sold to Netflix. And now it’s coming out soon.

Tartakovsky had never been in this situation before. “Anything I’ve ever done, whether it’s a TV show coming out for a movie, had a release date,” Tartakovsky. “At a certain point, you can’t blame the buyers.” Tartakovsky said that he would think to himself, My God, what did I do wrong? Was this just out-of-touch with people? Is it too early? “You start doubting yourself,” he said. “You start becoming insecure about what you’ve done. And then I thought about all the test screenings how great they were. It’s just one of those things. You can’t explain it.”

Netflix is the perfect home for “Fixed,” Tartakovsky said, because “they have the opportunity to do things that are different and new, they can take a few more risks.” And it’s true – “Fixed” is a pretty big risk. But it’s also bold and exciting in a way few animated features are these days, with a solid emotional center and wildly funny set pieces.

“I think it’s a great opportunity and they’re the biggest with content and with viewers. For this little movie to then be on the biggest stage is fantastic. I think it could be a water cooler movie. And hopefully it would grow and open up the opportunity to do more and different material, perhaps R-rated animated films,” Tartakovsky said. In the west, animation is still in “a tight little box.” Hopefully “Fixed” can help explode that notion. “I have a lot of high hopes and big dreams and aspirations for success, but I’m just happy it’s coming out,” Tartakovsky said.

The project started, Tartakovsky said, with a concept he developed at Sony in 2009. He wanted to capture the goofy camaraderie of Tartakovsky and his group of really close friends. They’ve been friends since high school and are always able to make each other laugh. Maybe he could replicate that dynamic in an animated feature. The initial idea was called “Buds,” with the group consisting of different types of animals, not all dogs, sort of an animated “Hangover.” But when an executive suggested that it needed a stronger hook, Tartakovsky was struck with a bolt of inspiration and asked, “What if one of them is a dog and he realizes he’s going to get neutered in the morning?” The whole room laughed. And “Fixed” was born.

But when “Fixed” was first shelved, the brass asked Tartakovsky to look at this project that had been stuck in development hell. It had a really appealing center, but nobody could quite crack it. That project was “Hotel Transylvania.”

Tartakovsky is infamous in the industry for sticking with ideas – his recent series “Unicorn: Warriors Eternal” had been kicking around for more than 20 years before it became an animated series, first for Max and then for Cartoon Network’s late night animated programming block Adult Swim – and “Fixed” was no different. Around 2020 he started working on the movie again, with the unique arrangement between Warner Bros. Discovery’s New Line Cinema and Sony Pictures Animation.

And now that it’s finally coming out, Tartakovsky wants to continue pushing for original animated features. “I’m always bullish,” Tartakovsky said. “My number one fight is that I want to have the career that I have in TV, but I want to have it in features, where I have original after original. Obviously a Miyazaki model is the best thing ever. He can just make pretty much whatever movie he comes up with. That’s kind of the goal. And in this business and in our climate right now, it’s so hard to get an original sold.”

He said that he is currently trying to get two original animated movies made, including his long-in-development “Black Knight.” And maybe this relationship with Netflix will open up some doors previously thought shut? He teases that he is in development on a series for the streamer as well.

For now, though, he’s just thrilled that people will get to see “Fixed,” which has a voice cast that includes Adam Devine, Idris Elba, Fred Armisen, Kathryn Hahn and Bobby Moynihan and is, we cannot stress this enough, extremely hilarious. When the movie premieres on Netflix he wants two things – one, for audiences to laugh; and two, he wants the to appreciate how great hand-drawn animation is (again).

“There’s so much craft in it from the backgrounds to the character animation to the designs to everything, it’s a cartoon, which used to be a dirty word in features,” Tartakovsky said. Oh, maybe there’s one more thing. “I hope people fall in love with the characters and have favorites and all that kind of stuff, that’s how you’re successful – if the characters live on,” Tartakovsky said. Yes, they will live on, even if some of them are missing some of themselves.

“Fixed” will screen at Annecy this year, followed by a Netflix debut on Aug. 13.