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Not everyone is pleased by the rapid expansion of anime – not least because, according to some studio bosses, Hollywood sees it as a cheap way to create content.
Speaking at a recent Machi Asobi event (via Gigazine, translated by Anime Corner), CoMixWave Films founder Noritaka Kawaguchi (who helped produce several of Makoto Shinkai's films) and the studio's overseas business leader Mie Onishi sat down in conversation to discuss anime's far-reaching growth into the west.
After namechecking the likes of Star Wars, Lord of the Rings and Scott Pilgrim, Kawaguchi groused, "There are a little too many works to check out. I have to watch Japanese anime and I also have to read [Shonen] Jump.“
Onishi replied, "That’s right… That’s why it’s not a good idea to animate everything. Anime is just one method, not a genre. In fact, what I hate these days is that when I talk to people in Hollywood, they ask me, ‘Can’t you make this as an anime?’ What lies behind this is something like, ‘It’s cheap if it’s an anime,’ which really pisses me off."
Onishi then went on to mock a request from a Hollywood executive, saying, "It would cost 20 billion yen to make a live-action movie, so can’t you make it an anime?'"
The proliferation of anime has increased in recent years. Previously, Studio Ghibli and the works of Your Name director Makoto Shinkai stood (mostly) alone from the medium, but a concerted effort has been made to translate anime's popularity into Western properties.
Chief among them is Star Wars, with its Disney Plus show Star Wars Visions. A Lord of the Rings movie – 2024's War of the Rohirrim – also tried to capitalize on the increased attention anime has been getting in recent years with the likes of Solo Leveling, Attack on Titan, and Demon Slayer breaking more into the mainstream.
For more, check out the new anime coming your way this summer, plus all our picks of the best anime to watch right now.
