Warner Bros Plans To Increase Anime Investment This Year
Warner Bros Discovery is going all-in with anime in 2024 as the release of Suicide Squad Isekai approaches.
Anime's growth in recent years is nothing to sneeze at, and it would seem that Warner Bros Discovery is investing more funds as the Suicide Squad prepares to enter the isekai world. Warner Bros has helped create some major anime adaptations in the past, including JoJo's Bizarre Adventure and Record of Ragnarok. In a new report, the WB confirmed that not only will the company be expanding its anime investment, but it will be doing so "significantly" thanks to the medium's skyrocketing popularity.
Variety confirmed that Warner Bros Discovery is venturing further into the anime game, as the President of Warner Bros' Asia-Pacific division, James Gibbons, commented on the bigger anime investment, "We have a Japanese anime studio, which has been producing five or ten anime series per year, over the last few years. We've approved expansion to take that to more than ten series per year."
Gibbons then took the opportunity to discuss how Warner Bros Discovery has been selling its anime productions to third parties over the years, "We've sold them to third parties. That has been one of the metrics. And they are doing very well and, so, because we see the appeal of the category, we are expanding it. Anime is one of the best ways to reach the 18 to 30-year-old audience, which is incredibly elusive. Globally, albeit not in every market, but certainly in the U.S., parts of Europe and Latin America, we've got strong anime audiences."
Will More DC Characters Come To Anime?
The upcoming Suicide Squad Isekai might only be the opening salvo for DC comic book characters hitting the medium, as Gibbons explains, "There is Japanese anime that comes from original IP. But there's also anime that comes from elsewhere. 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."
Which DC heroes and villains do you want to see receive their own anime adaptations? Do you think the Suicide Squad will give us the best Isekai of 2024? Feel free to let us know in the comments or hit me up directly @EVComedy to talk all things comics, anime, and the upcoming Suicide Squad Isekai.