Despite the cost-cutting measures taken following the massive merger, Warner Bros. Discovery has shown a willingness to invest and double-down in areas the studio feels it can succeed such as DC and Harry Potter. Anime can join that list as WBD looks primed to expand its investment in the genre, and potentially more as the studio looks to expand its reach in Asia.
The update comes courtesy of WBD's president of Asia-Pacific James Gibbons who told Variety that his wing was set to significantly expand production.
“We have a Japanese anime studio, which has been producing five or ten anime series per year, over the last few years,” Gibbons said. “We’ve approved expansion to take that to more than ten series per year.”
WBD's decision is understandable given the astronomic growth in anime's popularity with Western audiences, especially over the last decade.
Anime in the West
While anime had found its ways to Western TV screens since the 1960s, the genre really didn't start to take off in those markets until the late 80s and early 90s. Theatrical releases like Akira and Ghost in the Shell opened the door for series such as Dragon Ball to air on TV, leading to the genre's first big boom in popularity with Western viewers.
The biggest boom for the genre, though, began in the 2010s as streaming became more and more prevalent. Dedicated services such as Crunchy Roll would emerge while larger platforms including Netflix and Max looked to expand their respective libraries with a variety of series and films from some of the biggest names in anime including Hayao Miyazaki.
Warner has already had a hand in producing some of the most popular modern anime including JoJo's Bizarre Adventure and Mob Psycho 100, both of which had amassed large followings since their respective anime series began. JoJo, in particular, has proven to be a consistent hit for Netflix, with all five seasons available to stream on the platform.
From comics to anime
The studio has dipped its toes into the anime pool, as well, with its own closely-held properties, most notably DC. One such release was 2018's Batman Ninja, a 3D-animated film produced by Warner Bros. Japan and YamatoWorks, an animation studio that had worked on multiple anime franchises including Gundam.
“There is Japanese anime that comes from original IP. But there’s also anime that comes from elsewhere,” Gibbons told Variety. “And we’ve looked at our DC universe and said, ‘Can we take these characters and reinvent them in world of world of anime,’ which is not straightforward because you have to do it the right way. You have to work with the right studios to make it happen and to build your fan base.”
Suicide Squad ISEKAI is set to be the next DC anime adaptation from WBD and Wit Studios, the latter of which is best known for producing the first three seasons of Attack on Titan. The series will see the titular team comprised of Harley Quinn, Deadshot, Peacemaker, Clayface, and King Shark sent by Amanda Waller to a magical realm to aid a kingdom under siege by orcs and dragons.
Suicide Squad ISEKAI is scheduled to premiere in Japan in July 2024.
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