New Anime Awards Celebrate Japanese Culture Without Targeting Crunchyroll
On July 4, during the Production I.G x Wit Studio Industry Panel at Anime Expo 2026, Wit Studio founder George Wada unveiled a new anime awards event called Tokyo Anime Next, scheduled for October 30 to November 2. Wada emphasized that the aim of this initiative is “to judge, recognize, and give awards to anime in Japan, by the Japanese people.” This bold declaration quickly caught the attention of fans and commentators, sparking discussions about its implications, particularly in relation to the well-known Crunchyroll Anime Awards. But is this really the first “Japanese” anime award?
Not at all. Japan has a rich history of anime awards, including the Anime Grand Prix, which is determined by votes from readers of Animage magazine, and the more established Tokyo Anime Awards, judged by industry professionals and academics. However, these awards often lack international recognition, which seems to be a primary goal of Tokyo Anime Next, especially considering Wada’s mention of laying the groundwork for a larger international event set to launch in 2027.
If the focus is on international audiences, why emphasize that this is a “Japanese” award? The comparisons drawn with the Crunchyroll Anime Awards can be somewhat misleading. While Crunchyroll is an American company, it was acquired by Sony in 2020, a Japanese conglomerate. The Crunchyroll Anime Awards have been hosted in Tokyo since 2023, with this year’s ceremony celebrating a decade of the event, featuring Japanese TV personality Jon Kabira and U.S.-born Japanese singer and voice actress Sally Amaki as presenters, all conducted in Japanese. Sony’s president and CEO Hiroki Totoki delivered the opening remarks.
A significant influx of subsidies is set to encourage anime and manga companies to adopt AI for translations.
Much of the criticism aimed at the Crunchyroll Anime Awards revolves around its voting system, which heavily favors judges over public votes (70:30). A glance at the 2026 judges list reveals a notable absence of industry professionals—those actively working in the anime sector. Instead, the majority are journalists, influencers, or social media figures.
Rather than a reactionary stance against an already Japanese-centric award show, the Tokyo Anime Next awards could genuinely differentiate themselves by including creators, studio executives, and other influential figures from the Japanese anime landscape. Wada indicated that “a coalition of anime studios” would be behind the event, marking a significant departure from the Crunchyroll Anime Awards. This initiative appears to focus more on the relationship between studios and distributors rather than a Japan vs. the world narrative.
What about public voting? Will it be restricted to Japanese citizens? Such a decision could spark controversy. Since 2023, international revenue has outpaced domestic revenue in the anime industry. In this context, do awards given “by the Japanese people” still hold relevance? The reality is more nuanced than many analysts in the anime community suggest. The production market, which tracks studio earnings, remains largely dependent on domestic revenue: in 2024, it grew by 9.1% year-on-year to 466.2 billion yen ($3.06 billion), while international revenue contributed 118.8 billion yen ($781 million).
This might shed light on Wada’s efforts to establish an industry-centric and “more Japanese” alternative to the Crunchyroll Anime Awards, while still aiming to engage with the international market through the upcoming event. Ultimately, this reflects an ongoing struggle within the anime industry that many commentators overlook. Anime continues to be a distinctly Japanese form of entertainment, created by Japanese individuals and primarily for a Japanese audience, yet the industry must now contend with its growing global appeal. How it navigates this challenge will significantly influence the future of anime, both creatively and commercially, in the years ahead.
