Anime’s cultural clout

Manga and anime are everywhere, it seems. Between 2020 and 2022 alone, demand for anime—which refers to Japanese animation versus manga’s comics and graphic novels—grew 118%, as shown by data from Parrot Analytics, making it “one of the fastest-growing content genres by that metric during the pandemic.”

In June 2024, the Japanese government announced it was seeking to expand its overseas market for video games, manga, and anime fourfold to $130 billion by 2033 as part of its Cool Japan strategy, the Japan Times reported. The Japanese Cabinet Office described the strategy’s soft power as “an extremely potent means of ensuring Japan can maintain its presence and influence on the global stage.”

The strategy document also stated that “content like anime and manga has played an extremely important role in attracting bigger and bigger young audiences abroad, serving as their ‘gateway’ to Japan.”

In a recent report on the impact of France’s Culture Pass—a grant for teens to spend on the arts—71% of the 24 million pass users have bought books, with half of those buying manga and comics, the Art Newspaper reports. It adds that “as a result, France has become a leading consumer of manga, second only to Japan, with 40 million copies sold last year.”

Wc Donalds composite — Composite: Welcome to WcDonald's by McDonald's.

Keen to be part of this growing appetite for manga and anime, brands are seeking to tap into their widespread appeal, with an audience that spans kids to adults.

Earlier this year, McDonald’s took an immersive dive into the anime universe with its WcDonald’s campaign. WcDonald’s restaurants have, the brand says, long been featured in “anime’s most memorable movies and shows,” as a cheeky reference to the fast-food giant. McDonald’s embraced this homage with a campaign that introduced manga-inspired WcDonald’s packaging across 30 global markets, created in collaboration with manga artist Acky Bright; a limited-edition Savory Chili WcDonald’s Sauce; and WcDonald’s anime, produced in collaboration with Studio Pierrot.

“Anime is a huge part of today’s culture, and we love that our fans have been inviting us into the conversation for years,” says Tariq Hassan, chief marketing and customer experience officer at McDonald’s USA. “The WcDonald's universe is a reflection of what fans have created.”

The WcDonald's universe is a reflection of what fans have created.

Tariq Hassan

Chief marketing and experience officer, McDonald's USA

The past year has also seen a rise in visibility for anime streaming service Crunchyroll. Acquired in 2021 by Sony, the company opened its second Indian office earlier this year and has dubbed more than 80 shows in Hindi, Telugu, and Tamil, Rest of World reported. The publication also stated that Crunchyroll “plans to produce anime shows based on Indian characters, themes, and stories.”

In an article on the Sony Corporate Blog, Rahul Purini, president of Crunchyroll, singles out Brazil, India, and Southeast Asia as “emerging markets with large anime audiences and huge potential for continued growth.” The popularity of anime overseas is, Purini says, prompting Japanese creators “to tell more diverse, unique, and amazing stories.” Underlining the streaming service’s growing global reach, in February 2024 it announced a collaboration with LG Electronics to offer the Crunchyroll app on LG Smart TVs in the United States and select international regions.

Crunchyroll x LG Collaboration — Crunchyroll collaboration with LG.

One Piece Credit BBC Toei Animation — One Piece, BBC Toei Animation

In August, the BBC became the only place where UK audiences could watch dubbed versions of the cult anime series One Piece, after it acquired the UK rights to over 1,000 English-dubbed episodes. Fiona Campbell, controller of youth audience for BBC iPlayer and BBC Three, noted that “with its captivating storytelling, rich characters, and global fanbase, One Piece has become a cultural phenomenon.”

Indeed, in a 2024 report, Polygon dubs anime “the new Friends” for Gen Z, as it makes “a massive impact on modern audiences in everything from how they dress to how they interact with those around them.”

Polygon found that 42% of the Gen Z members it surveyed watch anime weekly, followed by 25% of millennials. With anime fans particularly concentrated among Gen Z, it’s likely to continue to be a compelling cultural niche for brands to explore.

Main image: McDonald's Welcome to WcDonald's.