Top 5 anime-inspired Hollywood movies

It’s no secret that Hollywood has drawn on Japanese anime for inspiration. But did you know just how many hit movies aren’t fully original?

Anime is now a cultural phenomenon, transcending borders and captivating viewers across the world. From Pokémon to Attack on Titan, it has a wide range of genres, and therefore has something to appeal to everyone.

Anime is relatively new for a Western audience. Three Tales was the first anime film to be broadcast in the United States in 1960, followed by Instant History (1961-63) and Astro Boy (1963-66). However, over the past few decades it has had a profound impact on Hollywood culture.

So, here are five of the biggest Hollywood titles that were inspired by popular anime series.

Top 5 anime inspired Hollywood blockbusters

From Disney classics to an Academy Award winner, did you know the secret source material behind these five movies?

1. The Lion King and Kimba, the White Lion

Ask anyone at Disney and they’ll likely say they’ve never heard of Osamu Tezuka’s Kimba, the White Lion, let alone watched it. But that doesn’t change how startling similar Disney’s 1994 Lion King looks to the 1966 Kimba, the White Lion – even The Simpsons pointed it out.

The similarities don’t stop with the names Kimba and Simba. Plagiarism allegations have followed Disney’s hit film since it was first released.

Just like The Lion King, Kimba, the White Lion follows the journey of a young lion cub to becoming King of the Jungle. But it’s the animation that draws the most comparisons, with well-known scenes including Mufasa sitting on Pride Rock and his ghost appearing to Simba later in the movie having an almost uncanny resemblance to the earlier anime.

Kimba, the White Lion is available to watch on: Funimation.

2. Black Swan and Perfect Blue

The parallels between Darren Aronofsky’s 2010 Academy Award-winning film Black Swan and Satoshi Kon’s 1997 Perfect Blue aren’t as obvious as those drawn between The Lion King and Kimba, the White Lion. However, there are enough similarities to make fans question whether they’re more than a coincidence.

Both films are psychological thrillers, that feature a female protagonist that struggles with the pressure of her job (Black Swan’s Nina is a ballerina and Perfect Blue’s Mima is an idol). Essentially, both films feature a psychological battle that blurs the lines between fiction and reality.

But it’s not just that. Despite some plausible deniability regarding the storyline, fans can’t overlook the fact that Aronofsky holds the American remake rights for the anime. Furthermore, keen observers have noticed that several scenes in Black Swan bear a striking resemblance to those in Perfect Blue, despite Aronofsky’s denial of any influence from the anime.

Perfect Blue is available to watch on: Amazon Prime Video

3. Pacific Rim and Neon Genesis Evangelion

In the 1990s, Hideaki Anno’s Neon Genesis Evangelion helped anime recover from a huge industry slump. More than 30 years later, it’s been winning awards and inspiring art ever since.

So, Pacific Rim and Neon Genesis Evangelion are both sci-fi classics about machines fighting monsters. But the plot comparisons don’t stop there. The premises behind the two films are incredibly similar, both revolve around military coalitions that have banded together to create giant robots to battle aliens.

It’s possibly a little unfair to say that Pacific Rim was directly inspired by Neon Genesis Evangelion. However, the influences are clear enough in Del Toro’s blockbuster that you can play a mecca anime cut and paste until you eventually get Pacific Rim.

Neon Genesis Evangelion is available to watch on: Crunchyroll and Netflix

2. Inception and Paprika

Unlike the other entries on this list, Christopher Nolan is pretty upfront about his anime inspiration behind the 2010 film Inception – Satoshi Kon’s 2006 film Paprika.

Both films revolve around dream manipulation technology, with organizations invading people’s dreams to influence their minds. However, the films are so similar that fans have taken to Twitter, Reddit, Tumblr (and pretty much every other online platform you can imagine) to compare and contrast them. Why? Because many fans feel like the lines were crossed between inspiration and plagiarism.

Paprika is available to watch on: Netflix, Amazon Prime Video and Apple TV

1. The Matrix and Ghost in the Shell

It’s no surprise to any anime fan that the 1999 hit film The Matrix was inspired by the classic 1995 anime, Ghost in the Shell.

While the stories are very different, both films have similar cyberpunk themes and major visuals similarities. One could say that the Matrix is pretty much like a homage to its predecessor and filled with references that you can’t miss, including exploding watermelons, a green color grading and an infamous scene of a woman falling from a great height through the city.

In fact, these two films are so similar that fans have created many websites, podcasts and even side-by-side comparison videos to discuss just how many creative liberties the Wachowskis took.

Ghost in the Shell is available to watch on: Amazon Prime Video and Funimation

One of the most amazing things about the creative industry is how works of art can inspire other works of art, and this goes both ways. Hollywood takes cues from anime, as seen in series like Avatar: The Last Airbender, while anime draws inspiration from the West, as seen in works like Little Witch Academia compared to The Worst Witch series. This demonstrates the borderless nature of creative media that provides fans with endless hours of entertainment (and, in this case, discussion).

How to watch Crunchyroll from outside your location in 2023

Crunchyroll is the world’s best hub for streaming anime, whether it’s One Piece, Attack on Titan, or Jujutsu Kaisen – and thanks to ExpressVPN, you can access the platform’s full library even if you’re outside the US.

If you’re abroad, here’s what you need to do to access Crunchyroll’s full selection – and it really is this simple:

1. Sign up for ExpressVPN, which has ultra-fast servers and offers a secure, private connection wherever you are in the world
2.  Connect to a location anywhere in the US; Express VPN allows you to choose from 24 different spots, from New Jersey to Santa Monica
3.  Visit Crunchyroll online and start streaming all of your favorite animes – and perhaps some you’ve never watched

Accessing Crunchyroll’s US roster makes a difference; for example, Hong Kong users only have access to less than 100 titles, while the US has nearly 1,000 movies and TV shows.

You can also stream anime on Crunchyroll for free with an ad-supported plan, or you can pay for a subscription – there’s even a 14-day free trial if you can’t quite make up your mind.

While you’re here, why not check out some of our other anime coverage here?

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