Key Takeaways
- Anime is now a strong soft power asset for Japan, with 44% of Gen Z watching popular anime in the US.
- The anime industry has doubled in size since 2012, fueled by overseas markets and streaming services.
- Streaming services like Netflix have played a key role in boosting anime viewership, as the industry continues to grow.
It is no secret that anime is more popular than ever, growing exponentially in the US and all around the world. Most popular anime can be found on Netflix or Crunchyroll. It is now one of the strongest soft power assets for Japan, and its increasing popularity also boosts other media, such as niche Japanese games, which are maybe in the process of also becoming more widespread.
This even causes some sort of generational conflicts, because “old school” anime fans grew up in an environment in which their hobbies were seen as exotic or strange. Anime was, like most animation, something for kids, and if you liked it and were not a kid anymore, you were that “geeky friend with peculiar hobbies”.
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But that’s past now. According to Dentsu producer’s Eimi Shimizu, anime is in a new phase in the US. The company conducted a survey in 2022, in which 44% of Gen Z respondents (ages 18-24) stated they watched popular anime, and they liked anime even more than major sports in the US, including football.
Those things actually overlap: you can watch the NFL and Jujutsu Kaisen. Major celebrities today also talk about anime, such as Meghan Thee Stallion and Michael B. Jordan. And this also seems to be how Gen Z sees it, not only in the US, but in many countries around the world, according to Shimizu.
A Growing Market for International Fans
The Anime Industry Doubled Its Size in a decade
In 2022, the anime market doubled its size compared to 2012, and this growth was partially pushed by the overseas market, which is now as big as the domestic Japanese market. What helped this growth was the popularization of streaming services, including niche anime-focused ones, like Crunchyroll.
Broader services with anime content, like Netflix, were also important, because they allowed people to give anime a chance, since the series were already available. The COVID-19 pandemic made people spend more time at home, and this also boosted anime viewership. For a quick comparison, in the 2014 Fall Anime Season, around 55 anime shows aired in Japan (which was already a lot), while around 80 anime are now airing during 2024 Fall Season. Streaming services are key to understanding anime’s growth in the last decade.
Looking at the Future
The anime industry expanded in a way has been able to provide seasonal titles for many different genres, from school life to dystopian sci-fi, with unique stories. This also matches streaming services’ need to feed their audiences with regular new content, so it’s also a bit natural that the surge of streaming services boosted content like anime and k-drama.
Anime is probably now here to stay (although some animators, such as Gundam creator Yoshiyuki Tomino, think otherwise). It is now an inseparable part of Japan’s international identity, and it will likely keep influencing content all over the world more and more (not even the Vatican can stop it).
Source: The Japan News