Crunchyroll adds four million subs in January 2021
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Editor
| 02 February 2021
Just as it was announcing a brand partnership with Idris Elba’s Green Door Pictures to develop a sci-fi animated thriller, global anime provider Crunchyroll announces that in January it surpassed the four million subscriber milestone and now has 100 million registered users.
Crunchyroll 4M 2 Feb 2021
As an indication of its growth, the company announced three million subscribers and 70 million registered users in July 2020 with the UK among the top five countries with the highest number of subscribers. Daily premium active users were found to be watching 100 minutes a day, growing from 85 minutes a day in 2019. In addition, as of summer 2020, premium subscribers have watched more than 35 billion minutes of content in the past year.

“For more than a decade, through anime and anime-inspired Originals, Crunchyroll has been leading the charge for the popularisation of adult dramatic animation and we are fast becoming the epicentre for the next generation of animation fans, as is evidenced by our incredible growth in registered users and subscribers,” noted Crunchyroll general manager Joanne Waage.

As the strong growth was being announced, the company revealed a deal in conjunction with Green Door Pictures and Sabrina Elba’s Pink Towel Pictures to develop Dantai (working title), said to be a dark fantasy animated series for Crunchyroll’s global anime audience. Currently in development, the Afro-futuristic science fiction series will be set in a city where the rise of biotechnology has created an ever-widening gap between the haves and have-nots. Two rising stars from either side of this divide are pitted against each other in a story that will ultimately explore equality and kinship within a corrupt society.

The Elbas will serve as executive producers. “We’re really excited to be announcing this deal on our first anime,” they remarked. “We’re both fans of the genre and see a huge opportunity to create something unique for a powerhouse like Crunchyroll. The story of Dantai is our first collaboration as producers together and is one that is close to our hearts.”

“Gens Y and Z have experienced superhero fatigue and are hungry for the new stories and ideas that our creators tell,” added Waage This development deal with Sabrina and Idris Elba is another example of how we’re working with best-in-class partners to bring in new audiences and tell fresh and compelling stories through a medium that transcends genres and generations.”