Crunchyroll Makes Its First Feature-Film Acquisition
Summary
Crunchyroll is moving deeper into theatrical film. Its first feature acquisition comes with something distributors increasingly value above almost everything else: an audience that already exists.
Crunchyroll has acquired North American and worldwide rights outside Asia to The Apothecary Diaries: The Late Lady's Treasure. Sony Pictures will handle theatrical distribution alongside Crunchyroll, combining the anime platform's highly targeted audience with a major theatrical distributor. The film is an extension of an already successful anime and manga property, meaning the audience isn't being built from scratch. The deal is another example of distributors looking for films that can plug directly into an existing entertainment ecosystem.