We don’t need to tell you that anime is growing as an industry in North America, with Disney being one of the entertainment studios that has taken notice. Thanks to this fact, Disney+ has been housing more anime as part of its library in recent years worldwide. As of the writing of this article, you can watch the likes of Zom 100: Bucket List of the Dead, Twisted Wonderland, Undead Unluck, Sandland The Series, and more on the platform. In a new press release, Disney has confirmed that some of the biggest anime films are arriving on the streaming service, though there’s a fairly big caveat for those living in the United States.
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Disney+ has announced that ten of the biggest anime films are coming to its streaming service in the United Kingdom and France, marking the first time that any of these will be streaming in these countries. On top of Akira, some heavy hitters will arrive on the platform that are most assuredly not “family friendly.” While these movies don’t have release dates linked to them, they are confirmed to arrive later this year, and you can check out the full list below
- A Silent Voice (dir. Naoko Yamada; U.K. & Ireland only)
- Akira (dir. Katsuhiro Otomo; U.K. & Ireland only)
- Belle (dir. Mamoru Hosoda; U.K. and France streaming debut)
- Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence (dir. Mamoru Oshii; U.K. and France streaming debut)
- The Girl Who Leapt Through Time (dir. Mamoru Hosoda; U.K. and France streaming debut)
- Mirai (dir. Mamoru Hosoda; U.K. and France streaming debut)
- Perfect Blue (dir. Satoshi Kon)
- Summer Wars (dir. Mamoru Hosoda; U.K. and France streaming debut)
- Weathering with You (dir. Makoto Shinkai; U.K. and France streaming debut)
- Wolf Children (dir. Mamoru Hosoda; U.K. and France streaming debut)
- Your Name. (dir. Makoto Shinkai)
Disney’s Anime Relationship
Luckily, if you’re in the United States, many of these films are available to stream on other platforms that aren’t Disney+. Films like Akiraand A Silent Voice are currently available on Crunchyroll, while others such as Perfect Blue, Weathering With You, Your Name, The Girl Who Leapt Through Time, and Belle are a part of HBO Max’s library. Unfortunately, one big entry on this list currently isn’t available to stream anywhere, which is made all the more surprising considering the franchise is slated to make a big comeback.
Ghost in The Shell 2: Innocence currently cannot be streamed on any platform in North America as of the writing of this article, with Amazon Prime Video set to house Science SARU’s upcoming release on July 7th. With this new anime adaptation that brings Major Kusanagi back to her roots, it’s discouraging that one of the biggest entries of the franchise is left in streaming limbo in the West
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