Netflix Unveils 'Fool Night' and 'The One Piece' at
Get the Culture newsletter
Daily culture — film, music, books, the trends and ideas worth your attention. Free.
- Netflix unveiled 'Fool Night' at Annecy — an anime based on Kasumi Yasuda's 2020 manga set in an oxygen-starved world where humans can transform into plants called 'Spiriflor' to survive.
- The One Piece, a new animated series distinct from Netflix's live-action hit, will start from the East Blue saga of the original manga, with the first image from episode 1, 'Romance Dawn,' revealed at the festival.
- Yuji Yamano, Netflix's director of content acquisition for anime, said anime drew 1.5 billion views last year with over 50% of subscribers watching it, calling the genre 'once seen as niche and now it's a global force.'
- Netflix also showed new looks at 'Sparks of Tomorrow' (a steam-powered Kyoto), 'Blue Eye Samurai,' and 'Bass X Machina' (a lawless steampunk West), plus a trailer for animated feature 'The Ribbon Hero,' launching in August.
Why it matters: Netflix's anime strategy is paying off materially — 1.5 billion views last year and majority-subscriber engagement put Japanese content firmly in the streamer's growth pillars. By debuting both original IP ('Fool Night') and franchise extensions ('The One Piece') at Annecy, Netflix signals anime is now core programming, not a niche add-on.
Ask SkimNews
