Crunchyroll’s Secret Weapon Poised to Dethrone Disney+, Netflix, and HBO Max by 2026
Once a niche hub, Crunchyroll has muscled into the anime mainstream. Supercharged by Sony, it’s snapping up exclusives and embedding itself in production—momentum that could vault it past rivals.
Crunchyroll used to be the scrappy place you went when you really wanted anime. Now it is one of the biggest players in the space, and with Sony behind it, the service is not just streaming shows — it is deep in the production pipeline. The short version: Crunchyroll has been quietly locking down exclusives and getting in so early on new series that it could leap ahead of Netflix, Disney+, and even HBO Max by 2026. Bold? Yep. But the pieces are there.
How Crunchyroll got from niche to power player
Other streamers piled into the anime boom, but Crunchyroll has been embedding itself directly with the studios actually making the stuff. Instead of waiting for finished shows and overpaying in licensing auctions, it is putting money in up front and sitting at the table where decisions get made.
The behind-the-scenes move that changes everything
Here is the part most people do not see: nearly every anime is steered by a production committee — a group that calls the shots on creative, scheduling, and rights. According to data from Anime By The Numbers, Crunchyroll co-produced roughly 18% of all new anime in 2025. That is about one out of every five or six new shows with a Crunchyroll producer in the room.
When Crunchyroll is on a committee, it tends to prioritize distribution, rights management, and promotional rights outside Japan. That means it can line up launches, marketing, and licensing in the territories where it believes a series will really pop — even if the domestic reaction in Japan is muted. It is a strategic bet on global upside, not just local buzz.
What co-producing buys them (besides fewer bidding wars)
- Skip the expensive licensing auctions with Netflix, Disney+, and Amazon Prime — deals are set early.
- Shape release plans and marketing from day one, not after the fact.
- Tighter control over international rights and windows, which means cleaner rollouts.
- More time to build bigger premieres and pre-release hype.
- Merch timelines that actually sync with peak interest instead of missing the moment.
- Some influence on production decisions that make global distribution smoother.
Crunchyroll vs. the field right now
Outside Asia, Crunchyroll and Netflix effectively split most of the anime streaming attention. The difference is approach: Netflix’s co-production strategy comes and goes, while Crunchyroll has been steadily turning up the volume. Getting in early gives Crunchyroll a marketing head start and the leverage to take niche titles and push them into global success stories.
Where this is headed by 2026
Crunchyroll is not just chasing the biggest shows or the most views — it is trying to rewrite how anime gets made and released for a worldwide audience. Think of it aiming to be the one-stop home for anime the way Disney+ is the no-brainer for Marvel fans, or how HBO Max keeps the DC pipeline in one place. A specialist service can absolutely outmaneuver a generalist like Netflix inside a niche, and Crunchyroll is acting like it intends to own that niche — and possibly more.
Could that strategy make Crunchyroll the de facto anime platform by 2026? The momentum says it is possible. Whether it becomes an outright monopoly is another conversation, but the direction is pretty clear.