The news: In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Netflix anime head Kohei Obara revealed that half of Netflix’s 222 million worldwide subscribers watched “some” anime on the platform in 2021, and that time spent watching anime increased 20% globally.
- Netflix also revealed that it is doubling down on its investment in Japanese animation, disclosing last week that it will release 40 anime series in 2022 alone.
How we got here: Netflix dipped its toes into anime in 2016, and since then, the format has become a global phenomenon and another major battleground for streaming services.
- Like many markets targeted by media giants, anime has experienced some consolidation. Last August, Sony completed its $1.18 billion acquisition of anime streaming service Crunchyroll, which is being merged with its existing anime production company Funimation.
- In 2019, HBO Max secured a deal to exclusively stream Japanese film animation company Studio Ghibli’s catalog, which contains internationally successful films like “Ponyo,” “Spirited Away,” and others by famed director Hayao Miyazaki.
- Amazon Prime Video also has a catalog of critically acclaimed anime exclusive to the platform, and Disney+ has announced plans to release new anime series.
It’s not just TV and streaming that have benefitted from the global rise of Japanese animation. Spinoff films of popular series have gone toe-to-toe with superhero blockbusters, with “Jujutsu Kaisen 0” earning $30 million since opening in North America last month.