New Netflix Report Reveals Three Anime Series Garnered Nearly 500 Million Hours of Views
The Top 10 Most-Watched Anime on Netflix of 2023 (Full-Year Report)
A new Netflix report has revealed the top 10 most-watched anime of 2023 via a massive new data dump, with some familiar yet also a few unexpected titles appearing via What We Watched: A Netflix Engagement Report.
Combining Netflix’s What We Watched: A Netflix Engagement Report from both halves of the year revealed that Baki Hanma: Season 2 was the most-watched anime of 2023 on the platform with a massive 160.7 million hours watched. Baki Hanma’s leading performance becomes even more impressive when considering that it was released in the second half of the year, unlike second-place Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba: Tanjiro Kamado, Unwavering Resolve Arc, which benefited from strong viewership numbers across both periods. The One Piece anime’s first season, ONE PIECE: East Blue, took third place, completing the podium. Readers can check out Netflix’s top 10 anime of 2023 with viewing hours figures below.
– Baki Hanma Season 2: 160.7 million
– Demon Slayer: Tanjiro Kamado, Unwavering Resolve Arc: 159.4 million
– ONE PIECE: East Blue: 153 million
– Record of Ragnarok Season 2: 128.5 million
– Hajime no Ippo: The Fighting!: Season 1: 121.3 million
– Hunter x Hunter (2011) Season 5: 91.3 million
– Pokémon The Series: Indigo League: Season 1: 76.4 million
– VINLAND SAGA Season 2: 73.9 million
– Demon Slayer: Entertainment District Arc: 72.7 million
– Pokémon Journeys: The Series Season 1: 71.8 million
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IhLZP4Xt5nM
The data spotlights the clear popularity of action titles and sequels, as well as the long shelf life of titles, many of which continue to pull massive amounts of viewers nearly a decade and 25 years on with Hunter x Hunter (2011) and Pokémon The Series: Indigo League, respectively. The streaming service continues to shore up its anime catalog, with the likes of Jujutsu Kaisen, One Piece, Black Clover, My Hero Academia, and more all heading to Netflix this year. Netflix’s bullishness toward Baki Hanma, seen again with the anime sequel announcement Baki-Dou and the upcoming Hanma Baki vs Kengan Ashura, has clearly paid off; Baki Hanma Season 2 topped the list despite only having data from July to December, while Season 2 also ranked 38th among TV series of any medium for that period.
The Upcoming One Piece Anime Remake Will Be Streamed Exclusively on Netflix
Next to Baki, Netflix’s most interesting and highest-potential anime is arguably One Piece, very likely to become its flagship franchise. ONE PIECE: East Blue’s viewing hours grew 64% from the first half of 2023 to the second half. Meanwhile, its follow-up ONE PIECE: Alabasta nearly doubled from 22.5 million to 40.2 million hours watched. Naturally, this owes a big part to the live-action adaptation, which had the second-most hours viewed of any TV or movie on the platform. Netflix will also exclusively stream the One Piece remake, in development since at least November 2023, which fans old and new will almost certainly tune in for.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7XGw5QG6Tm0
Netflix’s data also has important ramifications for anime production in more general terms. The recent Anime Industry Report 2023 highlighted that production committees in Japan are establishing the model of licensing anime to streaming services exclusively for a set period. This is before granting similar rights to secondary streamers and TV stations. This new data highlights its viability even overseas, with 50% of the anime industry’s income arising from overseas and even recycled anime titles showing a timeless demand.
Source: Netflix
