Wow, this is an interesting approach.

Just as the release came out saying HANA had a visual change for the first time in five months, an announcement was made without delay that an event called “ASIA POP GIRL FEST 2027” would be held next year in Japan, Thailand, and the Philippines, featuring the three groups: HANA, 4EVE, and BINI.

The schedule is as follows: [Chiba] LaLa arena TOKYO-BAY, January 22 (Fri) and January 23 (Sat), 2027 [Bangkok] BITEC LIVE, February 13 (Sat), 2027 [Manila] SM Mall of Asia Arena, February 19 (Fri), 2027

Since LaLa arena TOKYO-BAY seems to have a capacity of 10,000, considering HANA’s popularity, I think it will sell out instantly, but I also get the impression that the venues in Thailand and the Philippines are small considering the popularity of 4EVE and BINI.

However, I think the setup is intended to make it meaningful for fans of each group to see the performances of the other two groups.

After all, 4EVE is a very popular group in Thailand, to the point where their X post celebrating their appearance at “MUSIC EXPO” held at Tokyo Dome reached number 1 in Thailand and number 7 in the world.

They debuted in 2020 and have 1.36 million YouTube subscribers.
The music video for their song “TEST ME” has exceeded 140 million views.

BINI is a group that became a huge topic at Coachella this year, and they even reached number 1 on X’s global trends at the time of their first appearance at Summer Sonic.

They debuted in 2021 and have 3.37 million YouTube subscribers.
The music video for the song “Pantropiko,” which I personally got hooked on, has exceeded 120 million views.

And HANA is a hugely popular group that has leaped to become one of Japan’s leading girl groups in just one year, and it is still fresh in my memory that they won the Best New Artist award at the MUSIC AWARDS JAPAN.

They debuted in 2025 and have 2.28 million YouTube subscribers.
The music video for their debut song “ROSE” has over 89 million views.

Considering their overwhelming popularity in their respective countries, I think this three-group live concert is a very interesting initiative in the sense that it will be an opportunity for fans in each country to learn about groups from other countries.

Moreover, personally, since the 21st century is the Asian century, I think there is great significance in these three groups doing a three-man live, connecting each other’s fans, and increasing their global recognition.
I also think it is very significant for HANA, a Japanese group, to increase their fan base from Asia to the world.

Man, I don’t think it will be easy to get tickets, but I’d love to see the response at the venues in Chiba, as well as in Thailand and the Philippines…
I’ll just have to wait and trust that fan cams from those who attend will be uploaded.

I’m thinking of chatting about these topics with everyone in the chat room “Future of Entertainment” on Wednesday from 9:00 PM.
If the timing works out, please join us.

Originally published at https://note.com on August 28, 2026.

I’m excited to hear that HANA will be holding a three-man live tour across three countries next… was originally published in Future of Japanese Entertainment on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

The nine-member boy group &TEAM is making headlines after their EP “We on Fire,” released in April, achieved the remarkable feat of debuting at number 52 on the “Billboard 200” album chart for the week of May 30, as announced by Billboard in the US.

While the “Billboard 200” has seen Japanese artists making headlines recently-such as BABYMETAL reaching number 9 last year and XG hitting number 93 this year-this record surpasses the 106th place achieved by ONE OK ROCK in 2017 for a male group from Japan, and marks the first such achievement for a so-called Japanese boy dance and vocal group.

After all, &TEAM set “Japan to Global” as their keyword from the moment of their debut, and while they focused primarily on Japan for their first three years, they made their Korean debut last October, becoming the first Japanese artists to achieve a million in both Japan and South Korea, and they have now carried that momentum into hitting the US hit charts.

Of course, while &TEAM is a boy group from Japan, they are also a group under HYBE, which manages BTS, and they are a global group that includes members from Taiwan and South Korea, so there are likely many who would disagree with simply defining them as a Japanese group.

However, the reason why &TEAM’s entry into the “Billboard 200” chart can be clearly called a remarkable achievement in the history of Japanese boy groups is that they are a group that primarily performs songs in Japanese.

&TEAM Followed the K-Pop Formula for Success

If you had asked ten years ago whether a Japanese boy group could get American fans excited with Japanese-language songs, many would have answered that it would be difficult.

Even after K-Pop artists like BTS and Stray Kids began increasing their fan base around the world, many Japanese industry insiders held a pessimistic view, believing that Japanese boy groups could not compete with K-Pop boy groups who had undergone rigorous training.

However, &TEAM has proven that even a group primarily composed of Japanese members can succeed in the US if they undergo training through a K-Pop-style development system and are able to showcase their performance to the world through K-Pop media and fandoms.

In fact, looking at &TEAM’s YouTube views, while Japan is number one, more than half of the views come from overseas, with South Korea in second place and the United States in third.

Japanese Boy Groups Have Begun Seriously Aiming for the World

This remarkable achievement by &TEAM will undoubtedly have a positive influence on other Japanese boy groups, and many are already trying to step out from Japan to the world just like &TEAM.

Symbolic of this is the announcement that Number_i, affiliated with TOBE, has signed with Atlantic Records, a music label that boasts world-class stars like Bruno Mars and Ed Sheeran.

Additionally, JO1, affiliated with LAPONE Entertainment, has announced a North American live tour starting in October and has revealed that they will release a US version of their EP as their US debut work this autumn.

PSYCHIC FEVER, affiliated with LDH, has also expanded their field of activity, having successfully completed a US tour last year after their song “Just Like Dat feat. JP THE WAVY” became a hit worldwide, and serving as the headliner representing Japan at the “ennichi ‘25” showcase held in Los Angeles by CEIPA at the end of last year.

Furthermore, BE:FIRST, affiliated with BMSG, has released a collaboration song with the popular Philippine group SB19, performed at a 100,000-person concert held by SB19 in the Philippines, and has announced a showcase tour visiting four cities around the world as well as appearances at one of Indonesia’s largest music festivals, showing their energetic global expansion.

Also, among groups affiliated with STARTO ENTERTAINMENT, activities to increase overseas recognition are spreading, such as Travis Japan releasing an American travel program on Disney+, Snow Man appearing on a Korean music program last year, and Ren Meguro being selected as a main cast member for season 2 of SHOGUN this year.

We are in an era where various Japanese boy groups are aiming for the world in various ways, to an extent that would have been unimaginable ten years ago.

What Should We Learn from &TEAM’s Success?

Here, I would like to reflect once again on why &TEAM was able to achieve the remarkable feat of charting on the US “Billboard 200” just over half a year after their Korean debut last October, despite having focused their activities primarily on Japan for three years.

Naturally, a major factor is that their origin, the audition program ‘&AUDITION — The Howling -’, was watched all over the world. There is also no doubt that they are able to operate based on platforms unique to K-POP, such as &TEAM’s music videos being uploaded to HYBE’s YouTube channel, which has over 80 million subscribers, and their appearances on Korean music programs being watched by people around the world on YouTube.

However, another point is that &TEAM is making multiple efforts to bring their performances to global fans, even within the Japanese media environment.

For example, if you look closely at their YouTube channel, you can see that multiple videos of their appearances on Japanese music programs, such as the Kohaku Uta Gassen, have been uploaded.

In fact, it seems that for K-POP artists, when they are active in Japan for a long time, it is not uncommon for dissatisfaction among overseas fans to grow because they cannot watch their appearances on Japanese music programs.

Therefore, &TEAM seems to have chosen to actively publish content on their own channel that they can purchase from TV stations or release for a limited time, such as the Kohaku Uta Gassen, so that overseas fans can also watch it.

The appeal of &TEAM, which is spreading to the world through the power of fans

Another feature is that &TEAM often allows fans to take photos and videos during showcases and Japanese festival appearances, and permits them to post these fan-cam videos on social media.

In Japan, there are still many cases where filming at live concerts and festivals is completely prohibited, but it is becoming clear that the spread of live footage by fans in this way plays an important role in increasing the number of overseas fans.

Even among Japanese boy groups, in recent years, groups like TOBE and LDH have clearly published social media guidelines for fans, allowing them to proudly share photos and videos of the artists. How to leverage the power of fans to expand their performances to the world is likely to become a key point.

In any case, there is no doubt that &TEAM’s remarkable achievement has proven that the claims considered common sense in the industry 10 years ago-that ‘Japanese boy groups cannot succeed globally’ and ‘you cannot increase global fans with Japanese songs’-were urban legends.

Starting with &TEAM’s success, I look forward to watching various Japanese boy groups establish new common sense in the world.

This article is a full reprint of the Yahoo! News contribution article from May 31, 2026.

Originally published at https://note.com on June 1, 2026.

Will &TEAM’s Remarkable Achievement of Ranking on the US Billboard Chart Open Doors to the World… was originally published in Future of Japanese Entertainment on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

After much deliberation, I decided to take the plunge and attend “Zipangu,” the first Japanese music festival held in the US. It was truly wonderful, so I wanted to quickly jot down my thoughts on HANA first.

More so than at Coachella, the American mobile service and hotel Wi-Fi were incredibly slow, and even after sleeping on it, I could barely upload any videos, so only a few have been posted to YouTube so far.
Regardless, every single artist put on an amazing show.

Since it was the first time the festival was held, I honestly went in with some trepidation, wondering how many people would actually show up for a festival in the US featuring only Japanese artists. However, I felt sorry for even worrying about it, as a huge crowd gathered and the energy was incredible.

While the official attendance numbers haven’t been released yet, I think a significant number of people gathered.
What surprised me was that a large crowd had already gathered well before the opening, and there was an incredibly long line stretching out to the road outside the Rose Bowl venue.

It was clear that the turnout far exceeded the organizers’ initial expectations. The venue opened at 3:00 PM, and TeddyLoid, who was a surprise addition to the opening lineup, started his performance at 3:30 PM, but the reception area was so congested that people couldn’t get in at all.

It seems that by the time HANA’s performance started at 4:00 PM, there were still a large number of people outside who hadn’t finished the check-in process and couldn’t get in.
Since I was participating by accompanying a major media outlet, I was able to enter through the media back entrance and managed to secure a spot for HANA’s performance in time, but if I had come as a regular attendee, I would have barely made it at all.

By the way, this was HANA’s first US performance, and they showed a truly wonderful and spirited performance that really energized the venue.

There must have been many people seeing HANA for the first time in the US, but there were also many Japanese fans in attendance during their set who sang along, so it didn’t feel like an away game at all.
Since it was held in the US, filming was allowed, so as a self-proclaimed fan-cam photographer, I did my best to film and upload videos to YouTube so that people overseas could see HANA’s charm.

I think it’s easier to see for yourself than to read about it in words, so I hope you will take a look at the videos.

I have been a fan of the HANA members since their time on Nonoga and have followed their activities and written various articles about them, and it was a truly wonderful stage that made me look forward to their future growth, hard to believe they are only in their second year.

Actually, I had the opportunity to greet the members of HANA in person last year at a BMSG event, just after they had debuted.
They probably don’t remember me at all, but I had just seen XG’s performance at Coachella right before that BMSG event, so I was so excited after seeing HANA’s performance of “ROSE” at that event that I ended up telling them, “I’m sure you all will be able to succeed at Coachella too, so I’m looking forward to it.”

With this performance, it was confirmed once again that HANA will undoubtedly resonate with American music fans.
It was wonderful that they handled all their MC segments in English.
After that, their mentor, Chanmina, captivated the audience with an even more wonderful English MC, and I was deeply moved, thinking that their mentor is also wonderful when it comes to MCs.

As I wrote at the beginning, it is a shame that due to the lack of capacity at the organizers’ reception, many of the people who had gathered before the opening were unable to make it in time for HANA’s performance and missed it.

I hope that the fan-cams taken by me and others will serve as a small consolation for those who couldn’t see them live.

By the way, HANA currently maintains a strict no-filming policy for live shows and festival appearances in Japan, but considering that Chanmina allows filming at her own concerts, I imagine there is a high possibility that they will gradually allow fan-cam filming in Japan as well, starting with their first anniversary and this stage where filming was permitted.

In fact, my fan-cam video of this event has already received several comments in English from people in the US, and if they allow live filming like XG and HANA’s performance footage spreads more, I’m sure they will gain more fans overseas.
In any case, it was a truly wonderful stage that made me feel that it is only a matter of time before HANA is discovered by the world.

I look forward to the day when I can see HANA on the big stage at Coachella next.
I have put together a playlist of HANA’s stage, so please check it out.

(Of course, monetization is turned off, so you can watch it without ads. Let’s spread the charm of HANA to people overseas.)

Originally published at https://note.com on May 17, 2026.

HANA’s performance at Zipangu, their first show in the US, was truly amazing and I really want you… was originally published in Future of Japanese Entertainment on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

Are you aware that the film Chō Kaguya-hime! is causing an enormous stir this weekend?

Chō Kaguya-hime! is an anime film that began streaming exclusively on Netflix on January 22nd — but after generating buzz domestically and internationally from the moment of its release, it was given a one-week limited theatrical run from February 20th in response to a strong wave of fan demand for a theater screening.

However, since the limited theatrical run covers just 19 venues nationwide — and since it remains exclusively a Netflix-original production — when reservations opened, seats sold out almost immediately, leading to an extraordinary situation where theaters have been maintaining occupancy rates above 95% day after day — something simply unheard of for a typical film.

As a result, estimated box office revenue for the first three days has already crossed ¥200 million, with predictions that it will rank at #5 in the weekend audience ranking.

Considering that a typical large-scale film release normally opens in around 300 venues, cracking the weekly audience ranking with just 19 venues is an extraordinary achievement beyond conventional film industry logic.

The hit of Chō Kaguya-hime! can be said to fundamentally change the conventional wisdom about the relationship between streaming services like Netflix and theatrically released films — so let me explain the key points.

Netflix Original Films Have Been Theatrically Released Before

Netflix has produced numerous original films over the years, and the general impression of their theatrical releases has been that they follow a cycle of opening in theaters one to two weeks before the streaming premiere — primarily for the purpose of qualifying for film awards like the Oscars.

Naturally, since Netflix original films are produced for the company’s own subscriber base of over 300 million, there’s no pressing need to generate large theatrical box office revenues.

However, there is clearly a demonstrated demand for theatrical releases of Netflix original films.

For example, the live-action City Hunter, which launched on Netflix exclusively in April 2024 and generated major global buzz, was screened for two weeks in September at Ion Cinema Shiatus Chofu and Ion Cinema Shiatus Shinsaibashi.

Similarly, the Netflix-exclusive film Shinkansen Daibakuha, which became a hit in April 2025, received a two-week limited release at the same two venues from October.

Given that both of these ran nearly six months after their streaming debuts and at just two venues, they can be considered special events responding to the strong requests of core fans and industry stakeholders.

Furthermore, in the anime film space, there have actually been multiple instances of films that streamed on Netflix later receiving theatrical releases, or being simultaneously released in theaters and on streaming.

Among these, the most ambitiously executed was the film Bubble — which streamed exclusively on Netflix in April 2022 and then received a nationwide theatrical rollout through Warner Bros. in May.

That film ultimately earned ¥166 million — but despite opening in 338 theaters nationwide, the opening weekend box office was ¥65.81 million and the audience ranking placement was #9. This appears to have led industry insiders to conclude that theatrical releases of Netflix-streaming-first titles are simply too difficult to make work.

However, the success of Chō Kaguya-hime! this time can be said to dramatically overturn that conventional wisdom about streaming-first releases.

Why Did Chō Kaguya-hime! Succeed Where Others Failed?

So why was Chō Kaguya-hime! able to succeed at the theatrical release of a streaming-first Netflix film, which the industry had long considered nearly impossible?

Undoubtedly, a major part of the answer is the sheer quality of the film itself: after all, Chō Kaguya-hime! debuted at #7 in Netflix’s non-English film global chart in its opening week and earned a 91% audience score on U.S. review sites — proof that the film is genuinely extraordinary.

The involvement of famous Vocaloid producers, together with popular tracks, was no doubt another engine of online buzz.

Also critically important is that, as a film centered on a music live performance, the theatrical viewing experience is highly valuable — and the film is structured so that second and subsequent viewings reveal new discoveries.

But in addition to all those characteristics of the work itself, another crucial factor is the meticulous and careful efforts that the people involved — Studio Colorido, Twin Engine, and others — made to bring this film to success.

Most symbolically, Chō Kaguya-hime! carefully cultivated its own YouTube and other accounts well before the Netflix streaming premiere.

As detailed in Ryō Yūki’s analysis article published on February 4th, Twin Engine launched their X and YouTube accounts as early as November — over two months before the streaming premiere — and steadily built followers by releasing a series of “cover song” videos of famous Vocaloid tracks sung by popular voice actors, well before the film’s release.

While most Netflix original works rely on Netflix’s official accounts for promotion, Chō Kaguya-hime! setting up its own dedicated account is a rare approach — though given that countless new titles are released on Netflix every day, having an independent account to grow the film’s own fanbase is undeniably necessary.

In fact, thanks to the buzz generated by the many songs and videos released from the official accounts before the film’s streaming premiere, Chō Kaguya-hime! had apparently already surpassed 120,000 YouTube subscribers by the time the Netflix streaming started.

Also quoted in the above analysis article, director Yamashita of Chō Kaguya-hime! shared his thinking: “When I thought about how to succeed with an original feature film, I came to feel that ‘if we don’t start competing outside the film itself, it’ll be hard to capture a future of success,’ and I passionately told Yamamoto-san at Twin Engine about this (laughs). Our stance was ‘let’s do everything we possibly can,’ and exactly that spirit of doing everything possible is what also connected to the big hit of the theatrical release.”

Furthermore, the film’s soundtrack album entered at #1 on Billboard Japan’s download album chart, and the crowdfunding campaign for building a virtual space “Tsukuyomi” — launched on the 22nd — had already exceeded 400% of its funding goal in less than a day.

The extraordinary achievement of Chō Kaguya-hime! can be said to be only just beginning.

Will Netflix Support an Extension of Chō Kaguya-hime!’s Theatrical Run?

One of the things now drawing attention is whether the one-week limited theatrical run of Chō Kaguya-hime! will be extended or expanded.

Given the current reaction, ending the run at just 19 venues for one week would be unthinkable for any normal film in this situation.

Typically, a film that starts at a single venue or two — like One Cut of the Dead or Samurai Time Slipper — expands its venue count in response to audience reaction and continues its run. That would be the natural outcome here.

However, since Chō Kaguya-hime! was produced under the premise of being an exclusively Netflix-distributed film, what’s drawing attention is whether Netflix will permit and support an expansion of the run.

Netflix naturally also has the option of ending the theatrical release and prioritizing new Netflix subscribers attracted by Chō Kaguya-hime!.

In fact, while there were enormous global demands for a theatrical release of last year’s Netflix global hit KPOP Demon Hunters, Netflix was not particularly aggressive in expanding its theatrical run. Film journalist Koremasa Uno has noted concerns that the same problem could occur with Chō Kaguya-hime!.

However, Chō Kaguya-hime!’s official X account posted on the 21st: “Regarding the theatrical screenings that began yesterday, we are currently in consultation with various parties to provide more opportunities in response to this response.” The possibility of an extension is not zero.

Chō Kaguya-hime! Has Proven the Potential for Streaming Films in Theaters

In fact, looking back at the trends in Japanese theatrical film hits over the past few years, the potential for a streaming-first theatrical release hit like this one with Chō Kaguya-hime! was already becoming visible.

Anime films like Demon Slayer and Chainsaw Man, and live-action films like Kokuhō, all see many fans making repeat visits as loyal audience members — and today we are in an era where, for films worth seeing in a theater, people return to see them many times.

To begin with, the fact that fans turn out for theatrical preview versions of anime like Jujutsu Kaisen and Mobile Suit Gundam GQuuuuuuX — even when they could wait and see it on TV or streaming — clearly demonstrates the existence of demand to pay for the unique theatrical viewing experience, even when a free option exists.

Given that original anime films have become increasingly difficult to release theatrically in recent years, there is genuine industry debate over whether Chō Kaguya-hime!, had it not been released on Netflix first, would have generated anywhere near this level of buzz as a straight theatrical release.

But at the very least, Chō Kaguya-hime!’s success has now clearly proven that watching a film on a service like Netflix can become a reason to go to the theater — not a reason to stay home.

In fact, this also represents an opportunity for Netflix itself — Chō Kaguya-hime!’s model shows a clear path to additional revenue without losing existing subscribers.

Netflix’s rival Disney has already established a method — demonstrated in Japan with Zootopia 2 crossing ¥15 billion — of using Disney+ to grow fanbases for prior installments, then turning sequels into even bigger theatrical hits than their predecessors.

Streaming services and theatrical releases are not in opposition — they are not enemies.

Given that Netflix is currently negotiating the acquisition of Warner Bros. on the premise of continuing to release films theatrically, the search for a winning formula combining streaming and theatrical release — just like Disney — is absolutely essential for Netflix.

Could This Become a New Success Story Unique to Japanese Anime?

The success of Chō Kaguya-hime! this time has proven, at least in Japan, that producing a theatrically worthy anime film as a Netflix original can bring fans who saw it on streaming back to the theater, generating additional box office revenue on the order of several hundred million yen — without losing existing Netflix subscribers.

This clearly reveals the potential for additional revenue on top of Netflix’s existing subscriber base.

Netflix’s U.S. headquarters chose not to give KPOP Demon Hunters a full theatrical rollout.

However, if Netflix’s Japan team — which co-produced Chō Kaguya-hime! — views this movement as a new business model possibility unique to Japanese anime, then it is only natural that Chō Kaguya-hime!’s theatrical run should be handled flexibly in response to fan demand.

※ Shortly after this article was published, at noon, it was announced that the theatrical run would be extended and that an additional 8 venues would be added.

Chō Kaguya-hime! is without question an anime film that has changed the history of Japanese cinema — but depending on how things develop, it may eventually be remembered as one of the works that changed the business model of Netflix’s streaming and film strategy worldwide.

I look forward to hearing the news of the expanded theatrical run for Chō Kaguya-hime!.

This article is a full reprint of the February 23, 2026 Yahoo! Japan News contribution article.

Originally published at https://note.com on February 23, 2026.

The new Gundam film, Mobile Suit Gundam: Hathaway’s Flash — Circe’s Witch, has become a major topic of discussion after crossing ¥1 billion in box office revenue in its first five days of release.

After all, the first film, Mobile Suit Gundam: Hathaway’s Flash, released in 2021, earned ¥2.23 billion total at the box office — meaning the new film generated nearly half that total in just five days. This has been reported as an “extraordinary” mega-hit.

In fact, under conventional film industry wisdom, it was generally difficult for sequels to outperform their predecessors. And in terms of Gundam film box office records, the ¥2.3 billion earned by Mobile Suit Gundam III: Encounters in Space (1982) stood as the all-time Gundam record until the theatrical Mobile Suit Gundam SEED Freedom surpassed ¥5 billion in 2024 — so it’s natural that five days generating ¥1 billion is being called “extraordinary.”

However, stepping back a bit, the massive hit of Circe’s Witch can be seen not as “extraordinary” but rather as an “inevitable” outcome — the product of the accumulated efforts of everyone involved with Gundam over the past five years. Let me explain why.

Gundam’s Winter Years in the 2010s

Mobile Suit Gundam became a massive hit in the 1980s and has remained beloved by many fans even as they grew into adulthood — so many people may have the impression that it consistently produces hits. But in reality, the 2010s represent a period that could genuinely be called a “winter era” for Gundam, when relatively few films and anime were being produced.

To break out of that situation, Bandai Namco Group launched the “Gundam Project” in 2021.

The project aimed to make Gundam one of the world’s largest IPs, with Takashi Fujiwara appointed as Chief Gundam Officer to build a structure for the entire group to formulate and execute a more effective Gundam strategy.

バンダイナムコグループが「ガンダムプロジェクト」を発足。新作ゲームの開発を含む，「機動戦士ガンダムSEED」新プロジェクトの始動も発表

The theatrical Mobile Suit Gundam SEED Freedom — which became a blockbuster earning over ¥5 billion in 2024 — was actually one of the projects announced at that time. Subsequently, also in 2022, an announcement was made of a ¥45 billion investment in video content over three years as part of the project, including 12 planned Gundam works.

Reference: Bandai Namco HD to invest ¥35 billion in content creation across 120 works over 3 years; 32 new IPs and 88 existing IPs planned; Gundam to feature 12 works

バンナムHD、IP創出に向けた映像投資として3年間で総額350億円を120作品に投資　新規IPが32本、既存IPが88本　ガンダムは12作品を予定 | gamebiz

This created the foundation for Gundam-related works to make headlines virtually every year throughout the 2020s — a stark contrast to the 2010s.

Gundam Works Generating Headlines Every Year Becomes the New Normal

In practice: in 2021, alongside the launch of the “Gundam Project,” Mobile Suit Gundam: Hathaway’s Flash was released as a concurrent debut film and became an unexpected hit earning over ¥2 billion.

The following year, 2022, saw Mobile Suit Gundam: Cucuruz Doan’s Island earn ¥1 billion at the box office, while the first Gundam TV anime series in five years, Mobile Suit Gundam: The Witch from Mercury, trended on Twitter nearly every week and generated enormous buzz.

『ガンダム 水星の魔女』大成功を導いた"Twitter占拠作戦"の破壊力　明らかに不便な「毎週1話」方式が日本で好まれる理由とは《タイパよりリフレイン？》 | 文春オンライン

Then in January 2024, the theatrical Mobile Suit Gundam SEED Freedom became a record-breaking hit earning over ¥5 billion — rewriting Gundam film history.

『機動戦士ガンダムSEED FREEDOM』興収50億円＆動員300万人突破　大迫力の記念イラストも公開

Further, in 2025, the film Mobile Suit Gundam GQuuuuuuX -Beginning- earned over ¥3 billion as a theatrical preview ahead of the TV anime series, becoming yet another major hit.

The TV anime series also continued generating buzz week after week.

劇場先行版で1位獲得の快挙。「ガンダム ジークアクス」に学ぶ「ネタバレなし」で映画を観る贅沢（徳力基彦） - エキスパート - Yahoo!ニュース

With anime series and films being released virtually every year, Gundam generates headlines every year, and a cycle where fans make their way to the theater each year is being firmly established. It is clearly evident that the “Gundam Project” launched in 2021 has brilliantly succeeded in revitalizing Gundam as an IP.

Gundam IP Revenue Grows from ¥95 Billion to ¥230 Billion

In fact, when the “Gundam Project” was launched in 2021, Gundam’s annual IP revenue was ¥95 billion, with a target of growing it 1.5 times to ¥150 billion by 2025.

However, this target was achieved a year ahead of schedule in fiscal 2024 — and then the fiscal 2025 annual forecast, initially set at ¥160 billion, was revised upward to an astonishing ¥230 billion.

『ガンダム』単独で異例の売上増加　年度予想を1600億円→2300億円に大幅上方修正 | オタク総研

This was driven not only by the unexpected blockbuster success of Mobile Suit Gundam GQuuuuuuX in 2025, but also by the enormous attention drawn by the “GUNDAM NEXT FUTURE PAVILION” exhibit at Expo 2025 Osaka.

Every time the Expo was covered on television, giant Gundam statues were prominently featured — making it easy to imagine the PR effect was enormous.

The fact that Gundam’s IP revenue has grown from ¥95 billion to ¥230 billion simply means the Gundam market has more than doubled.

The situation surrounding Gundam at the time of Circe’s Witch’s release is completely different from when the first Hathaway’s Flash film debuted five years ago.

Furthermore, in the intervening years, past Gundam works have become available to watch on Netflix and other streaming services, steadily accumulating views — and it is now possible to do prerequisite viewing of Hathaway’s Flash and Char’s Counterattack before watching Circe’s Witch.

In that sense, the fact that Circe’s Witch has become a massive hit crossing ¥1 billion in just five days is neither “extraordinary” nor a surprise — it can be understood as the “inevitable” result of five years of effort by everyone involved in the “Gundam Project.”

Gundam’s International Expansion: The Next Thing to Watch

With that in mind — though it may be getting ahead of ourselves — what I want to watch next is whether Circe’s Witch can hit big not just in Japan but internationally as well.

Last year was a year when Japanese anime drew enormous global attention, from the theatrical Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle to the theatrical Chainsaw Man: Reze Arc.

In fact, Gundam has also seen Netflix’s full 3D CG work Mobile Suit Gundam: Requiem for Vengeance — distributed in 2024 — crack the top 10 in various countries around the world besides Japan, confirming the existence of international fans.

「機動戦士ガンダム 復讐のレクイエム」のヒットが予感させる、Netflixと日本アニメの黄金期（徳力基彦） - エキスパート - Yahoo!ニュース

The English-language trailer for Circe’s Witch also previews a U.S. theatrical release — and you can see large numbers of excited comments from overseas fans.

Until now, Gundam films have never crossed the ¥10 billion mark, and there has apparently been an industry belief that giant robot films can’t become massive hits. But in reality, Gundam is a globally massive IP ranked 13th in the world alongside Spider-Man, Batman, and Dragon Ball in global IP content sales rankings.

There are reports that a live-action Gundam film is in development with Hollywood, and the box office ceiling for Gundam films could be about to change dramatically.

I look forward to watching how far Circe’s Witch spreads — in Japan and around the world.

This article is a full reprint of the February 5, 2026 Yahoo! Japan News contribution article.

• なぜガンダム新作映画は大ヒットとなったのか。5年越しのガンダムプロジェクトが生んだ「必然」（徳力基彦） - エキスパート - Yahoo!ニュース
• 徳力基彦さんのページ - エキスパート - Yahoo!ニュース

Originally published at https://note.com on February 5, 2026.

Why Did the New Gundam Film ‘Circe’s Witch’ Become a Hit? was originally published in Future of Japanese Entertainment on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

XG’s debut full album “THE CORE — 核,” released on January 23rd, has been making waves not only in Japan but in South Korea, China, and various other countries — and its entry onto the U.S. Billboard chart on the 2nd has drawn particular attention.

The most notable achievement is the group’s entry at #93 on the Billboard 200, the U.S. all-genre album chart. In fact, only two Japanese groups have ever cracked the Billboard 200 top 100: BABYMETAL and LOUDNESS. Including solo artists, only five Japanese acts — among them Utada Hikaru — have ever done it.

The group also entered the all-U.S. artist chart at #74, and came in at #5 on the Top Album Sales chart — itself a remarkable feat.

Of course, last year BABYMETAL made history as the first Japanese group to crack the top 10 with a #9 debut on the Billboard 200 — an overwhelming achievement that makes #93 seem modest by comparison.

全米チャートで9位獲得の快挙。BABYMETALはなぜ世界で通用するアーティストとなれたのか。（徳力基彦） - エキスパート - Yahoo!ニュース

However, consider that Fujii Kaze’s all-English album “Prema” — which swept Japan’s major charts last September — only managed to get Fujii himself onto the U.S. artist chart at #87, without cracking the Billboard 200 at all. This illustrates just how formidable the wall of the American all-genre album chart is for Japanese artists.

Clearly U.S.-Targeted Promotional Activities

XG is well known for headlining the Sahara Stage — the largest indoor stage — at Coachella, the world’s largest music festival, last year. But the group is also famous for openly targeting a #1 on the U.S. Billboard chart as a goal.

XG、コーチェラ降臨──「音楽で世界に愛と勇気を届けたい」7人が語る現在地 | Rolling Stone Japan(ローリングストーン ジャパン）

That’s precisely why the promotional activities leading up to this full album release — with a clearly U.S.-focused strategy — were so impressive.

The most symbolic was the group’s performance of “GALA” as a guest artist on the finale of “The Voice,” one of America’s most popular audition shows, in December ahead of the album release.

Furthermore, during that U.S. trip, the group also recorded appearances on popular American podcast shows and YouTube programs — and all those videos were released in a cascade timed to the January 23rd album drop.

It’s clear that XG and their agency XGALX had been making thorough preparations to raise their profile in America ahead of the release.

Korean Music Shows Take Priority for TV Appearances

Another striking element of XG’s strategy is that they are concentrating their new single “HYPNOTIZE” performances primarily on South Korean music shows alongside the album release.

In the days immediately after the January 23rd album release alone, they appeared on Korean music shows on three consecutive days — and appearances have continued this week as well.

Last year, XG appeared on numerous Japanese music programs as well — but with the new year and this album release, their current priority on Korean music shows over Japanese ones is very striking.

The reason XG is currently prioritizing Korean music shows over Japanese ones is obvious.

Korean music shows basically upload their artists’ performance videos to YouTube, making them viewable by fans worldwide.

In contrast, Japanese music shows have barely adopted YouTube at all — making it difficult not only for overseas viewers, but even domestic viewers, to watch archives after the broadcast ends.

Last year, Snow Man was widely talked about for performing their new track “Karisumakkusu” on a Korean music show before any Japanese broadcast — and for artists who want to grow their global fanbase, which type of show to prioritize is as clear as day.

Snow Manが新曲を韓国の音楽番組で初披露。日本の音楽番組は変われるか（徳力基彦） - エキスパート - Yahoo!ニュース

Moreover, Korean shows don’t just upload the broadcast footage — many also post multiple additional videos on YouTube such as static-camera shots and individual member “chick cam” videos, allowing fans to enjoy the same performance from a variety of angles.

This time, XG appears to be strategically prioritizing Korean music show appearances precisely because of their awareness of how Korean programs spread globally through YouTube.

XG’s Music Steadily Growing in Reach

XG’s globally-minded activities appear to be delivering concrete results.

The clearest evidence is that XG’s YouTube channel view counts have surged far beyond what they were at the time of last year’s Coachella appearance.

Looking at the share of views after the album release, Japan accounts for roughly one-third — with the remaining views coming not just from the U.S. and South Korea where the group has been making appearances, but from Brazil, Thailand, Indonesia, and fans around the world. This vividly illustrates how widely XG’s music is being consumed globally.

XG’s current strategy is clearly delivering results.

YouTube Data Stoppage Is a Negative for J-Pop

As an unfortunate timing issue, XG’s album release coincided with a significant change: starting in January, YouTube stopped providing data to the U.S. Billboard charts.

YouTube、米ビルボード・チャートへのデータ提供停止を発表 有料ストリーミングの比重引き上げで | Musicman

According to analysis by Tsurezure Research Lab, the impact of this change caused J-pop and K-pop tracks — which tend to have relatively high YouTube streaming counts — to drop across the board on the Billboard charts.

XG, as an artist known for very compelling music videos, was likely significantly affected by this YouTube data stoppage. But conversely, the fact that XG broke into the Billboard 200 despite this unfavorable data change could be said to demonstrate the strength and resilience of their fanbase.

Currently, Japanese music is in the process of establishing a route to global expansion through anime tie-ups — a uniquely Japanese pathway. But XG, alongside BABYMETAL and Fujii Kaze, represents an artist who is pioneering methods of reaching the world outside of anime tie-ups.

なぜXGは世界同時ヒットを成し遂げられたのか。日本の常識に縛られない新しいアプローチ（徳力基彦） - エキスパート - Yahoo!ニュース

Since anime tie-ups are not available to every artist, in that sense XG’s approach may be the one most broadly applicable and instructive for Japanese artists at large.

Starting this Friday, XG’s second world tour kicks off from Yokohama — and their popularity looks set to reach exciting new heights.

I look forward to continuing to watch XG’s challenge.

This article is a full reprint of the February 4, 2026 Yahoo! Japan News contribution article. (Header image source: XGALX)

• XGの米国ビルボードチャート入りに学ぶ、日本の音楽の世界への広げ方（徳力基彦） - エキスパート - Yahoo!ニュース
• 徳力基彦さんのページ - エキスパート - Yahoo!ニュース

Originally published at https://note.com on February 4, 2026.

Lessons from XG’s Billboard 200 Top 100 Entry on How to Spread Japanese Music Globally was originally published in Future of Japanese Entertainment on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

Since last August’s announcement of Netflix’s exclusive streaming rights for the World Baseball Classic (WBC), which caused a major uproar, the specific format of the streaming arrangement has been gradually coming into view.

The most recent major development was the January 29th announcement by Nippon Television that it had been contracted to produce the broadcast coverage for 15 games including Japan’s first-round matches, and would also serve as a “Promotion Partner” to build excitement around the WBC through an opening special program and various other broadcasts.

Then on January 30th, it was announced that Ken Watanabe would serve as WBC Ambassador and Kazunari Ninomiya as Special Supporter to help drive excitement — with a conversation video featuring the two already published and generating buzz.

Starting February 19th, a documentary program — “DIAMOND TRUTH: The Truth of the World Baseball Classic” — will begin streaming on Netflix, with Ken Watanabe and Kazunari Ninomiya as navigators.

The key question going forward is how Netflix’s exclusive streaming will ultimately be received in Japan.

Is Nippon Television’s Production Contract a Defeat or a Victory?

When Netflix’s exclusive WBC streaming rights were announced last August, the Yomiuri Shimbun issued a statement expressing apparent displeasure immediately after the news broke, and some in the baseball world called for free-to-air broadcasts — leading to significant backlash against Netflix, which many will still remember.

WBCの地上波消滅報道で広がる波紋。Netflix独占配信3つの注目点（徳力基彦） - エキスパート - Yahoo!ニュース

The reaction to the announcement of Nippon Television’s production contract has similarly drawn criticism of Netflix and Nippon TV in that same vein.

After all, in Japan’s entertainment industry until now, terrestrial TV broadcasters have fundamentally reigned at the top of the ecosystem, producing programs in collaboration with various production companies and partner organizations.

Now, Netflix holds exclusive streaming rights, and Nippon Television has been contracted to produce the coverage and generate excitement through special programs rather than live match broadcasts. As a result, many seem to view this as Nippon TV being reduced to a subcontractor for Netflix — interpreting it as a defeat for Nippon TV.

However, looking from a slightly wider perspective, one could also say that Nippon TV — which accepted the contract for coverage production — can receive production fees from Netflix, and naturally gains an advantageous position over other TV stations in terms of using the footage in its own programs.

By accepting the reality of Netflix’s exclusive streaming rights and focusing on what it can do, Nippon TV may actually have won a victory over its rival broadcasters — that perspective is equally valid.

The Downside of Japan’s Long-Running Free-Viewing Culture

What I want to think about again here is the change in the role of Japanese TV networks due to the global spread of streaming video services.

Japan is a remarkably unusual country globally in that the popularity of free-to-air terrestrial television has been maintained for an exceptionally long period.

Before the pandemic, the phrase “the 5 million barrier” was commonly used — it was widely believed in Japan that paid broadcast subscriptions would only reach about 5 million people.

Meanwhile, globally, it is perfectly normal that popular sports can only be viewed by subscribing to paid sports channels or streaming services. And in fact, it is precisely this culture of paying for services that supports the globally soaring salaries of athletes — and is also the reason why talented Japanese players are increasingly lured abroad.

Japanese baseball players who transfer to Major League Baseball can earn salaries unimaginable in Japan because Major League Baseball generates enormous revenues as premium paid content.

This problem is not limited to sports.

Globally, because it is taken for granted that popular content is paid-for, not just sports but dramas and films also receive high production budgets, and actors and production staff can earn high incomes.

In Japan, the common-sense assumption that dramas, anime, and sports can all be watched for free through terrestrial TV has been maintained — with the result that, in global terms, drama and anime production budgets have been kept low, sports broadcast revenues have been kept low, and actors’ and athletes’ salaries have been kept low.

For viewers, it may seem like there’s nothing but benefit to watching popular content like WBC for free — but in reality, it also means that the cost of producing those benefits falls on the content creators’ side.

How Netflix Changed Anime and Live-Action Drama

Looking back with that perspective, Netflix has already brought several major transformations to Japan’s content industry.

First, anime — once frequently cited as one of Japan’s least profitable industries — has had its fortunes transformed as Japanese anime reached global audiences through Crunchyroll and Netflix. The result is that anime works like Demon Slayer and Chainsaw Man have gained fans worldwide, and anime films are now hitting globally.

世界5位に到達。劇場版「鬼滅の刃」無限城編の快挙に世界中が驚く理由（徳力基彦） - エキスパート - Yahoo!ニュース

Similarly, live-action dramas and films — where just five years ago it was industry conventional wisdom that Japanese live-action content would never work internationally — were upended when Netflix-distributed Japanese live-action titles like The Naked Director and Alice in Borderland became global hits, dramatically reversing that image.

シーズン3も世界1位獲得。「今際の国のアリス」が開いた日本実写作品の可能性（徳力基彦） - エキスパート - Yahoo!ニュース

Netflix productions tend to have higher budgets than conventional Japanese dramas and films, and actor compensation has reportedly risen accordingly — though it still lags behind global levels, to the point where Takayuki Yamada has been directly negotiating with Netflix for better terms.

山田孝之が「日本の俳優のギャラは安い」とNetflixに直談判した意義（徳力基彦） - エキスパート - Yahoo!ニュース

That illustrates just how undervalued Japanese anime and live-action dramas had been — and how dramatically the arrival of Netflix has elevated their worth. The expansion of Japan’s content market to a global audience has created real momentum.

It is also worth noting that while TV networks’ wariness of advertisers and viewers has made it increasingly difficult for actors who’ve been involved in scandals to return to TV, Netflix is providing those actors with a chance for a comeback.

Including improvements to the notoriously harsh working conditions on set, Netflix’s impact on Japan’s content industry is undeniably significant.

The Global Shift from Free Viewing to Paid Streaming Is Unmistakable

Of course, Netflix is not the only force driving this change.

When DAZN launched in Japan and acquired exclusive streaming rights for the J.League, it too sparked criticism and debate — but at least DAZN’s paid streaming model brought genuine new revenue to the J.League, dramatically changing its financial structure.

The fact that this year’s soccer World Cup can still be watched for free is undoubtedly thanks in large part to DAZN.

サッカーW杯の全試合配信。「和製外資」のDAZNは日本のスポーツ中継文化の救世主になるか？（徳力基彦） - エキスパート - Yahoo!ニュース

And that is only possible because DAZN subscribers are paying monthly fees — so they, too, deserve credit.

Of course, on the other hand, South Korea — where actor salaries soared following the global success of Squid Game — has seen many production studios and actors shift from domestic films and dramas to Netflix and Disney+ productions, throwing the domestic film industry into crisis. So there are clearly risks to depending too heavily on streaming services like Netflix or DAZN.

But at the very least, it is now an unmistakable reality that the entertainment mainstream is shifting globally from ad-supported free viewing to paid streaming.

Netflix’s exclusive WBC streaming is just one event in that ongoing shift.

If Japanese TV broadcasters truly want to compete with Netflix and reclaim WBC broadcast rights, they need to stop fixating on ratings competition among domestic players and instead be prepared to integrate all their streaming services and broadcast Japan’s sports to the world.

How Many Japanese People Will Accept Paying for Exclusive Netflix Streaming?

In that sense, the most important thing to watch with this WBC is how many Japanese people will accept this shift from free viewing to paid streaming.

While Japan’s matches in the soccer World Cup will still be broadcast on terrestrial TV — and DAZN has decided to make Japan’s matches available for free — Netflix is currently holding firm that game coverage itself will be exclusively for paid Netflix subscribers.

Even though paid streaming is becoming the global norm, many in Japan still hope to watch WBC on free terrestrial TV, as they always have — and those voices are not few.

For now, Netflix appears to be focusing on building excitement through free-to-view content on YouTube and similar platforms — but the real test will come when the tournament begins and the reality becomes clear that matches can only be watched on Netflix.

Netflix has been rolling out options to reduce the upfront cost for new subscribers — such as a plan offering effectively three months free in partnership with Docomo, and a bundle plan with LYP Premium — suggesting a strategy of softening opposition to paid streaming by lowering the barrier to entry.

However, it seems very likely that media attention will increasingly focus on the frustrated voices of baseball fans who want to watch but can’t — those living in areas without streaming-compatible TVs or without adequate viewing environments.

Whether the Nippon TV special programs and public viewing events that were announced can adequately serve as an alternative for those viewers will be an important point to watch.

If Netflix successfully navigates the tournament’s streaming period without major criticism or issues, and the Ken Watanabe and Kazunari Ninomiya documentary and other paid-streaming-exclusive content offerings earn genuine viewer appreciation, there is a real possibility that Japan’s social perception of paid streaming will shift significantly.

I look forward to watching whether Netflix’s exclusive WBC streaming will be remembered as the turning point that changed Japan’s free-viewing culture.

This article is a full reprint of the January 31, 2026 Yahoo! Japan News contribution article.

• NetflixのWBC独占配信は、日本のテレビの無料視聴文化を変える分岐点になるか（徳力基彦） - エキスパート - Yahoo!ニュース
• 徳力基彦さんのページ - エキスパート - Yahoo!ニュース

Originally published at https://note.com on January 31, 2026.

Will Netflix’s WBC Exclusive Streaming Be a Turning Point That Changes Japan’s Free-Viewing Culture? was originally published in Future of Japanese Entertainment on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

The overview of the 2025 film industry has been released, and the major news is that the box office revenue of films screened domestically in Japan in 2025 reached ¥274.4 billion — a new all-time record.

The previous record was ¥261.1 billion in 2019, before the pandemic.

While the rise in movie ticket prices to ¥2,000 in 2023 was a contributing factor, the fact that Japan’s streaming video services became widespread during the pandemic — leading to a period when some argued the movie theater business was “finished” — makes this record-breaking result all the more impressive for putting those arguments firmly to rest.

On the other hand, whether this record-breaking result is a positive signal for the future of Japan’s film industry or a temporary bubble seems to be a matter of debate, so I’d like to introduce the key points to watch going forward.

Is This Achievement a “Demon Slayer × Kokuhō” Bubble?

First, the biggest factor cited when people argue that this record-breaking performance is a one-time phenomenon is the historic hits of Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle and the film Kokuhō. After all, Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle earned ¥39.1 billion and Kokuhō earned ¥19.5 billion — together, the two films account for nearly ¥60 billion.

With 2024’s annual box office revenue at ¥206.9 billion and 2025’s at ¥274.4 billion, the difference is ¥67.5 billion — virtually all of which can be explained by just these two films’ performance.

Naturally, there’s no guarantee that two equally record-breaking hits will appear again in 2026, so it is understandable that many point to the 2025 record as a temporary bubble.

However, looking at the number of hit films, while the number of films grossing over ¥5 billion was 8 in 2024 and 9 in 2025 — not much of a change — the number of films grossing over ¥2 billion jumped significantly from 19 in 2024 to 30 in 2025. Even films over ¥1 billion increased from 41 in 2024 to 50 in 2025, suggesting that the breadth of hits has also expanded.

The Decline of “Films” — Especially Western Films

Another trend frequently lamented by movie fans regarding the current Japanese box office is the declining revenue from “Western films.”

In particular, 2024 — partly due to the Hollywood strike — saw Western films’ share of Japan’s box office fall below 25% again after the pandemic, which drew significant attention.

In 2025, the number of Western films released increased, yet their revenue share barely changed.

Of course, Mission: Impossible scored a hit of over ¥5 billion this year, demonstrating that Western films still have a presence — but it is becoming increasingly clear that the Western films that do succeed are almost exclusively franchise entries.

神対応に、コナンコラボ。トム・クルーズは低迷する洋画復活の起爆剤になるか（徳力基彦） - エキスパート - Yahoo!ニュース

In recent years, films that were global hits have increasingly arrived in Japan with substantial delays, or gone straight to streaming without a theatrical release at all. There are growing concerns about whether the culture of the typical “2-hour film with a self-contained story” can survive.

In particular, recent reports about the South Korean film industry falling into a serious crisis have begun circulating in Japan as well, and a number of experts seem to believe that the same crisis Korea is facing could be coming to Japan next.

瀕死の韓国映画界の一方で、日本にも「静かな危機」

The Industry-Wide Concern: Toho’s Near-Monopoly

When you talk to industry insiders about Japanese film, the topic that inevitably comes up is the problem of Toho’s near-monopoly on hits.

For example, among the top 10 domestic films by box office revenue this year, every single title except Hataraku Saibou (distributed by Warner Bros.) involved Toho in some capacity.

Moreover, Warner Bros. Japan ended its domestic theatrical distribution business in 2025, meaning it won’t appear in that list going forward.

Furthermore, last year there was a situation where Toho monopolized the top 5 in the box office ranking — which itself became a topic of discussion.

映画動員トップ5を「東宝」の邦画が独占...という異例事態。「一人勝ち」の牙城に死角ナシ？（斉藤博昭） - エキスパート - Yahoo!ニュース

After all, TOHOcinemas — the cinema chain operated by Toho — is so dominant in the Japanese film industry that the Japan Fair Trade Commission launched an investigation in 2023 on suspicion of antitrust violations.

TOHOシネマズ　再発防止策など確約計画書提出　独占禁止法違反疑いで公取委が調査 | TBS NEWS DIG

Many people are concerned that if Toho’s monopoly goes too far, diversity in film will be lost, and in the long run the vitality of the entire Japanese film industry will be undermined.

Still at 80% of Pre-Pandemic Levels: The American Box Office’s Continued Slump

However, when you step back and compare the current state of the U.S. and Japanese film markets side by side, a different picture emerges amid all these concerns about the Japanese industry.

In fact, the annual U.S. box office has remained stuck at roughly 80% of pre-pandemic levels for the past several years, with no real growth.

The likely reason is that the penetration of streaming services — particularly Netflix — in the U.S. is so high that the culture of watching films at a theater has never truly recovered, and a shift toward watching films at home has taken hold.

The most symbolic case in the American film industry is Disney.

After Disney shifted to streaming during the pandemic but later reversed course to re-emphasize theatrical releases, its 2025 global annual box office hit $6.58 billion (approximately ¥1.029 trillion), securing the #1 global studio spot by a wide margin — leading the U.S. film industry.

Among those results, Zootopia 2 set an all-time record for Western animated films, and Disney produced numerous major hits — but almost all of those hits are sequel entries in existing franchises or live-action adaptations of popular anime properties.

The Disney Group has already been establishing a new success formula for the streaming era: use Disney+ to grow fanbases for prior installments, then get those fans to show up in theaters for sequels.

ズートピア2が歴代1位の偉業達成。ディズニーが確立した動画配信時代の大ヒット映画の作り方（徳力基彦） - エキスパート - Yahoo!ニュース

Particularly striking is that Zootopia 2 — a franchise sequel — achieved a record-breaking hit approaching ¥14 billion in the Japanese market, where Western films are struggling. This itself seems to validate Disney Group’s strategic choices.

In a sense, it could be argued that the narrowly defined business of taking completely unknown 2-hour standalone films straight to theaters is shrinking globally — and that the very nature of “going to see a movie” is fundamentally changing.

Japan’s Cinema Business May Already Be Embodying a New Film Era

With that in mind, what’s fascinating about Japan’s hit film phenomenon is that many hit films are succeeding through what might be called “oshi-katsu” (fandom support) viewing patterns.

While there is criticism of the now-standard “entrance present” giveaways (freebies for admissions), these gifts drive many fans to see the same film multiple times — and that is one defining characteristic of Japan’s recent massive hits.

Also interesting with films like Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle and Chainsaw Man: Reze Arc is the fact that many core fans go to see the film already knowing the story from the manga.

Compared to the era when Western films dominated and it was normal to walk in knowing nothing about the story, this represents a major generational shift.

In other words, because it’s “oshi-katsu”-style viewing, fans go back to the same film multiple times, and theater experiences that can’t be replicated at home — like sing-along screenings — are increasingly preferred.

Moreover, the fact that so many fans repeatedly see the same story has a curious parallel to kabuki theater — which is precisely what the 2025 hit film Kokuhō is about.

Gen Z and younger audiences, not wanting to waste money on unfamiliar films, seem increasingly likely to visit theaters only for anime films like Demon Slayer or Chainsaw Man — where they already know the story — or for proven word-of-mouth hits they’re confident about.

Seen in that light, the direction that Toho has been leading in Japan — promoting “oshi-katsu”-style movie-going experiences — might actually be the world’s most cutting-edge approach to surviving in the cinema business in the streaming era.

Of course, a pessimistic view would say this only works in Japan because streaming services haven’t penetrated as deeply here yet.

Will the 2025 all-time record turn out to be a temporary bubble — or will we look back and say it was the dawn of a new film era? I look forward to continuing to watch how Japan’s film industry rises to the challenge.

This article is a full reprint of the January 30, 2026 Yahoo! Japan News contribution article.

• 日本映画産業の歴代最高記録は、「鬼滅×国宝」バブルか、新しい映画の時代の始まりか（徳力基彦） - エキスパート - Yahoo!ニュース
• 徳力基彦さんのページ - エキスパート - Yahoo!ニュース

Originally published at https://note.com on January 30, 2026.

Is Japan’s All-Time Box Office Record a ‘Demon Slayer × Kokuhō’ Bubble or the Dawn of a New Film… was originally published in Future of Japanese Entertainment on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

The nominations for the 98th Academy Awards — the world’s most prestigious film ceremony — have been announced. While Kokuhō (National Treasure) received a nomination in the Makeup and Hairstyling category, Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle has sparked debate by missing a nomination in the Best Animated Feature category.

After all, Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle became the first Japanese film ever to surpass ¥100 billion in worldwide box office gross, and ranked 7th in the 2025 global box office behind major Hollywood productions such as Minecraft and Jurassic World.

史上初の1000億円突破。「鬼滅の刃」がポストジブリ時代の扉を開くことができた理由（徳力基彦） - エキスパート - Yahoo!ニュース

Furthermore, it had been nominated for the Animated Film category at the Golden Globes — often considered an Oscars precursor — and a behind-the-scenes video for Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle published on the official Academy Awards YouTube channel two weeks before the nominations drew buzz. As a result, many industry insiders had predicted it would earn an Oscar nomination as well.

But viewed from a broader perspective, the fact that Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle missed a nomination this time itself reveals both the potential and the walls that Japanese anime still needs to overcome at this stage.

‘Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle’ Is Not a Self-Contained “Film”

In fact, Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle has several factors that put it at a disadvantage in the Academy Awards’ Best Animated Feature category under traditional criteria.

The biggest factor is that Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle is not a standalone, single-story film — it is a continuation of an ongoing long-form anime series.

Past recipients of the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature include franchise entries like Toy Story 3 and Toy Story 4, but fundamentally they center on films where a single movie completes the story and can be enjoyed without having seen prior installments.

No matter how much of a #7 global blockbuster Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle is, someone who has never seen Demon Slayer before would need to watch 63 episodes of the series to truly understand the story.

Moreover, this work is the first of a trilogy, and the story does not reach a conclusion.

Of the Japanese anime films that have won the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature, Studio Ghibli’s Spirited Away and The Boy and the Heron have each won — and both are standalone “films.”

By the traditional standards of the film industry, Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle is the kind of work that easily sparks debate over whether it should be evaluated as a “film” at all. In a sense, the fact that it received a Golden Globe nomination for Animated Film was already an achievement in itself.

Since the Golden Globes honors both films and TV dramas while the Academy Awards is a film-only ceremony by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, the hurdle for nominating Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle — a mid-series story from a long-form anime — was presumably even higher than imagined.

The Disadvantage of an “R Rating” in the Animated Feature Category

Another key factor to consider is the target age rating of Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle.

In Japan, the film is rated “PG12” — children under 12 require parental guidance, but anyone of any age may see it. In the United States, however, due to its violence and bloodshed, it has received an “R” rating, requiring parental accompaniment for viewers under 17.

In the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature’s history, R-rated films have almost never been nominated — the closest exception being the 2015 nomination of Anomalisa.

At the Crunchyroll Anime Awards, a foreign media commentator’s remark that “American ‘Animation’ is for children, while Japanese ‘ANIME’ is for adults” personally left a deep impression on me — and it seems that in the U.S., the image of animated films as children’s content remains strong.

This “R rating” label of not being suitable for children may have negatively influenced the Best Animated Feature nominations this time as well.

Box Office Hits Don’t Always Get Nominated

Furthermore — and this applies to the Oscars overall — it is a characteristic of the Academy Awards that box office hits are not necessarily nominated for major categories.

A telling example is that despite Marvel producing numerous global blockbusters, Marvel films were almost never in Academy Award discussions until Black Panther was nominated for Best Picture in 2018.

In particular, the fact that Avengers: Endgame — which holds the world all-time #1 box office record — received only a Visual Effects nomination is still a source of criticism from cast members to this day.

スカーレット・ヨハンソン、『アベンジャーズ／エンドゲーム』はアカデミー賞に軽視されたと批判「本来ならうまくいくはずのなかった映画なのに」

This time, Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle may similarly have found that becoming a blockbuster beyond all expectations — just like Avengers: Endgame — actually distanced it from Oscar nominations as a mainstream crowd-pleaser.

The Potential for a Future Win in Best Animated Feature Is Very Much Alive

On the other hand, since Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle is only Chapter One, there is every reason to believe that Chapter Two and Chapter Three could still earn nominations or even a win.

At this point, the long-form anime-to-film adaptation model is relatively unprecedented worldwide, but Disney+’s The Mandalorian is slated to release the theatrical film Star Wars: The Mandalorian & Grogu, and recent Marvel titles have already normalized a mix of streaming dramas and theatrical films.

Beyond Demon Slayer, various other Japanese anime — including Chainsaw Man and Jujutsu Kaisen — are building global followings, and the perception of anime worldwide as content only for children is steadily changing.

Incidentally, KPOP Demon Hunters — which beat Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle at the Golden Globes and is now a frontrunner for this year’s Academy Award for Best Animated Feature — is actually a Sony Pictures production, the same company that distributed Demon Slayer. That means it’s from the same Sony Group as Aniplex, which produces Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle.

In other words, Sony Group as a whole is steadily accumulating the know-how needed to win major international awards for anime works.

As the entire Japanese anime industry collectively breaks down the perceptual walls facing anime worldwide and society evolves, the moment when Chapters Two and Three of Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle lead and elevate the status of anime series globally should bring Oscar nominations and wins increasingly within reach.

While it is personally disappointing as a fan that Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle missed an Oscar nomination this time, it can also be seen as adding to the excitement of what lies ahead.

I look forward to the day when the creators use this result as fuel to surpass Chapter One with Chapters Two and Three, and we celebrate that Oscar triumph together.

This article is a full reprint of the January 23, 2026 Yahoo! Japan News contribution article.

• なぜ「鬼滅の刃」はアカデミー賞ノミネートを逃したのか。世界における日本アニメの伸びしろと越えるべき壁（徳力基彦） - エキスパート - Yahoo!ニュース
• 徳力基彦さんのページ - エキスパート - Yahoo!ニュース

Originally published at https://note.com on January 23, 2026.

Why Did ‘Demon Slayer’ Miss an Oscar Nomination? was originally published in Future of Japanese Entertainment on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

The momentum behind Disney’s Zootopia 2 shows no sign of slowing down.

The film became the fastest Western animated feature to cross ¥10 billion at the Japanese box office, but its worldwide gross has now surpassed $1.7 billion (approximately ¥270.4 billion), making it the all-time #1 Western animated film in global box office history.

Moreover, it has set an unprecedented record for any Western animated film by topping the weekend box office charts for seven consecutive weeks since release, and has climbed to #9 on the all-time global box office ranking.

Reference: Zootopia 2 achieves the all-time #1 record for Western animated films (surpassing Inside Out 2 for the Disney & Pixar all-time record as well)!

『ズートピア２』洋画アニメーション史上(『インサイド・ヘッド２』を超えてディズニー＆ピクサー史上＆)で歴代1位の偉業達成！(全世界興収)連続1位最長記録更新中(Zooっーと)！7週連続No.1 !ジュディ・ニックの救世主、ヘイスース(トカゲの重鎮)の本編映像も解禁！｜映画｜ディズニー公式

The triumph of Zootopia 2 is a symbol of Disney establishing a formula for creating blockbusters in the streaming age.

Disney Becomes the First Studio to Exceed $6 Billion Post-Pandemic

In 2025, Disney’s annual global box office revenue reached $6.58 billion (approximately ¥1.029 trillion), securing the top position in the annual global studio box office ranking.

Moreover, this crossing of the $6 billion annual threshold is a record that Disney achieved for the first time since the pandemic.

Of course, that feat was made possible in large part by three films — Zootopia 2, Lilo & Stitch, and Avatar: Fire and Ash — each earning over $1 billion, and all coming from Disney.

What deserves attention, however, is how Disney managed to consistently generate these mega-hits.

A Cycle Where Franchise Films Reliably Outperform Their Predecessors

In fact, Disney once shifted its strategy during the pandemic to prioritize its own streaming service over theatrical releases, causing controversy — but then reversed course and returned to emphasizing theatrical releases.

Throughout that process, Disney has been accumulating know-how through Disney+ viewership data, learning which types of content fans love and which films they’re willing to go to the theater to see.

The clearest evidence is the box office performance of Disney franchise sequels: Inside Out 2, Deadpool & Wolverine, and Moana 2 released in 2024, and Zootopia 2 in 2025 — all dramatically outperformed their predecessors.

The most symbolic of these was the massive hit of Moana 2.

モアナ2も新記録。ディズニーは「動画配信×映画館」の成功の方程式を見つけたのか（徳力基彦） - エキスパート - Yahoo!ニュース

This film was originally conceived as a drama series for Disney+, but was switched to a theatrical movie release.

The original Moana had a modest theatrical run of $634 million, but after its Disney+ streaming built a huge fanbase, Moana 2 surpassed $1 billion.

While Disney+ faces tough competition from Netflix and Amazon for streaming market share, it still boasts a global membership of approximately 150 million — a massive fanbase.

Conventionally, the sequential nature of franchise films — where viewers can’t follow the story without having seen prior entries — made it difficult for sequels to outperform their predecessors at the box office.

But Disney has succeeded in bringing more fans to theaters for sequels like Zootopia 2 — even nearly a decade after the first film debuted in 2016 — by using Disney+ to cultivate fans who had never seen the originals in theaters.

Growing Character Popularity Through Disneyland

Another distinctive feature of Zootopia 2 is its enormous success in China.

While the U.S. gross stands at $393 million, China’s gross of $610 million far surpasses it.

Comparing to the original Zootopia, where the U.S. earned $341 million and China $236 million, this represents a dramatic shift.

The reason lies in the world’s only “Zootopia” attraction, which opened at Shanghai Disneyland in 2023.

Having this kind of real-world touchpoint with characters is uniquely Disney’s strength — fans continue to grow even between new film releases.

This year’s live-action hit Lilo & Stitch was similarly boosted by the long-running Disneyland attractions fans had enjoyed before the film’s release.

なぜ映画「リロ＆スティッチ」は大ヒットしたのか。ディズニーが模索する配信と映画の相乗効果（徳力基彦） - エキスパート - Yahoo!ニュース

This is perhaps Disney’s unique weapon: having Disneyland as a real-world touchpoint between characters and fans, spread around the world.

Disney’s Strength: Growing Fans Through Real and Digital Touchpoints

In other words, Disney has been able to establish a system for growing and nurturing fans over the medium to long term by having both Disneyland and Disney+ as real and digital touchpoints respectively.

Of course, Disney is not without blind spots.

As a result of shifting content originally produced for Disney+ to theatrical release, Disney’s share of original content viewing time among U.S. streaming services plunged from 9% in 2022 to just 3%.

However, at the end of last year, Disney — which had previously taken the hardest line against generative AI copyright violations — made a major move by investing $1 billion in OpenAI. This choice may itself reflect Disney’s confidence in its own business model vision for the generative AI era.

なぜあのディズニーがOpenAIと提携したのか。日本が備えるべきエンタメビジネス激変の未来（徳力基彦） - エキスパート - Yahoo!ニュース

The fact that Zootopia 2 became a hit large enough to set an all-time Disney record shows that this Disney formula — combining real and digital touchpoints — is clearly matched to the times.

I look forward to watching just how far Zootopia 2 extends its record.

This article is a full reprint of the January 21, 2026 Yahoo! Japan News contribution article.

• ズートピア2が歴代1位の偉業達成。ディズニーが確立した動画配信時代の大ヒット映画の作り方（徳力基彦） - エキスパート - Yahoo!ニュース
• 徳力基彦さんのページ - エキスパート - Yahoo!ニュース

Originally published at https://note.com on January 21, 2026.