With the year coming to a close, it’s always nice to look back at what’s passed. And what a year it’s been, especially in cinema. Some real classics–to–be have graced the screen in an industry that’s seen scares left and right, cementing film’s popularity and standing power in the global consciousness. There have also been a myriad of surprises, as the past year illuminates the growth and reception of anime against the biggest blockbusters.
Perceived as a niche interest as recently as a decade ago, anime has since bled steadily into Western popular culture. Beyond film, industries like sports and wrestling have seen significant collaborations with anime in the past few years. Sports fans were treated to two iconic crossovers this year: one between One Piece and the Los Angeles Lakers, and the other between Demon Slayer and the MLB. Many wrestlers generally draw inspiration from anime, with members of World Wrestling Entertainment’s New Day tag team group all sporting anime tattoos. Wrestlers like Mercedes Moné (formerly Sasha Banks) and Keith Lee also incorporate anime into their personas and costumes.
What all these collaborative mediums share with anime is a deeper appreciation for narrative. From the personal narratives woven into song lyrics to the natural stories that develop over a season of any given sport, each is reflective, emotional, and raw. Blue Lock, a soccer manga, received an anime which aired at the same time as the 2022 FIFA World Cup, creating a cultural moment–turned–movement as Japan overcame classically difficult opponents like Germany and Spain to top their table. Though ultimately going out on penalties in the Round of 16, the effort displayed both immortalized this Japan team for a generation and created real economic benefits, with Blue Lock viewership increasing and the collaborative kit between the series and the national team selling out.
The point is clear: anime’s here to stay, and this is definitely starting to ring true for film lovers too. Previously relegated to home screens and mobile devices, anime has now grown large enough to see continued use of the theater as a viable release platform. The year has seen smash hits in Demon Slayer The Movie: Infinity Castle, and most recently, Chainsaw Man – The Movie: Reze Arc, which reportedly outperformed expectations significantly by making back its total budget 26 times over.
The ‘trend’ of anime in theatres can likely be traced back to Pokemon and Dragon Ball Z, both of which frequently incorporated films into their lineups as alternate imaginings of their characters or expansions on previous arcs. Though limited, the success of these films—notably Pokemon: The First Movie: Mewtwo Strikes Back and Dragon Ball Z: Battle of Gods—as well as the die–hard following cultivated by Studio Ghibli laid the foundations for an audience willing to explore beyond the limited exposure of the 2010s.
Since then, the success of these films has only continued. The Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle became the highest–grossing international film in the U.S., and Chainsaw Man: Reze Arc broke into the top five highest grossing anime films in the country and looks set to keep climbing.
The United States and Japan in particular have always had thriving symbiotic relationships between different creative mediums. For example, Harold Sakuishi’s Beck Mongolian Chop Squad inspired the aesthetics of several bands, including Oasis and Radiohead. From music to films and television to art, both countries’ cultural exchanges have thrived in their own histories, and this blossoming of anime at the Western box office is another instance of that materializing.
Despite this relationship, there’s a notable discrepancy developing between the audience receptions of anime and Western animation. While there isn’t quite a monopoly on anime, there’s certainly a settled hierarchy of animation studios in America, led by the Walt Disney Company. The company’s most recent line up reveals that of the ten most recent animated feature length films they released, only six were original IPs.
Dragon Ball Super: Broly and One Piece director Tatsuya Nagamine spoke on this issue earlier this year, where he mentioned that there has a steady increase in the worldwide adoption of anime due to successful anime needing to capture a global audience and constantly innovate visually. Meanwhile, the Disney model of storytelling and animation has stagnated, resulting in declining interest. It’s no coincidence, particularly in this case, that innovation triumphs over stagnation.
But there’s another point to consider as well. Current trends in anime point toward middle and high school–centered stories seeing the most success abroad, and Nagamine speculates this may be due to the infusion of Japanese lifestyles into these stories. It’s a fair point. It’s definitely hard to call to mind an American animation that thoughtfully depicts these sorts of nuances in the essence of its story, whereas these elements are present in most anime, past and present. Perhaps the final point is this: anime is on the rise because it presents a radically different model of storytelling, both narratively and visually, to its American counterpart.
The domestic box office saw Chainsaw Man: Reze Arc and Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle cut into the top 50 and 20 highest grossing films of the year respectively. A 4K restoration of the Studio Ghibli classic Princess Mononoke also managed to crack the top 100. The efforts and continued successes of films like these in recent times has been cause for a more direct and stated focus on acquisitions of these IPs by Sony’s Global Acquisitions Division. This plan was first announced at the Toronto International Film Festival, and is a move that may be cause for an acquisitions gold rush if proven successful. One more film, Jujutsu Kaisen: Execution, has just landed, so we can only wait on its reception to see if this pattern continues.
This continued trend of adoption could be a result of overlapping values and interests between the U.S. and Japan—both heavily feature character–driven storylines and underdog stories. Anime's success may be due to the aforementioned fatigue with the Western conventions of animation. It may just be for the profit. Whatever it is, anime has established its own presence in the States entirely, one unlikely to fade anytime soon.
