Now more than ever, anime’s influence is everywhere. Once relegated to the import sections of your favorite video stores, the Japan-born style has taken over the mainstream. Think about it: Netflix’s Oscar-winning film KPop Demon Hunters is obviously influenced by anime, as is another Oscar winner, Michael B. Jordan, who has gone on record in the past to speak about how Naruto influenced Creed III. Jordan is also the one whose answer to “what is your favorite movie” was Princess Mononoke, without hesitation.
With anime making an impact on pop culture, you’re bound to catch your favorite actors, rappers, or WWE superstars sharing what anime series they binge-watch in their free time. Some, like Lil Uzi Vert or Thundercat, may be obvious, as they lean into their nerd tendencies in their music, while some famous anime superfans may surprise you. Just know that Michael B. Jordan isn’t the only anime fanatic. Here’s a look at 10 celebrities who love anime.
Anime: Akira
In the summer of 2018, Kanye West posted a series of tweets about how Akira was his “biggest creative inspiration,” with that inspiration seemingly working through him subconsciously. “Every stage show I’ve ever worked on,” Ye shared, citing not just the “Stronger” video (which draws from Akira), but other videos, and he’d realize, “oh shit, this is like Akira.”
Anime: My Hero Academia, Jujutsu Kaisen
“I literally begin my day watching anime and I end my day watching anime,” Megan told GQ in 2020. “When I’m doing my makeup, I’ll have it playing in the background, and then before I go to sleep at night, it’s what I fall asleep to.” And while My Hero Academia is an obvious fav of hers, her 2024 track “Otaku Hot Girl” not only features a sample from Jujutsu Kaisen, but she sought out Adam McAurthur (who voices Yuji in the English Jujutsu dub) to drop a line on the song.
Anime: Anything Studio Ghibli, apparently
In a conversation between DiCaprio and Martin Scorsese for Letterbox’d, DiCaprio was asked what films he put Scorsese onto. “Considering you’ve seen every film ever made up until 1980,” DiCaprio joked, “it’s pretty hard to say” before remembering that it may have been Spirited Away or Princess Mononoke, to which Scorsese chimes in, “it was Spirited Away you told me to watch.” That selection would fit with DiCaprio’s activism being focused on our environment.
Anime: Fist of the North Star
Aside from being a supremely talented musician, Thundercat is an anime aficionado. And even though he’s dropped “Dragonball Durag” and sang about how much of his money he’s spent on anime, he’s given a number of answers to the question of what his favorite is. He told The Face that he’d go Cowboy Bebop for anime novices, then Akira, saying, “when I show my friends anime, if I go straight into shit like Fist of the North Star, they realize I’m crazy.” The 1986 film must be his real answer; in a conversation with Vulture, Thundercat named his three favorite anime films, and Fist of the North Star (“the movie, not the series”) was his first answer (before the animated Street Fighter II movie and Mind Game).
Anime: Princess Mononoke
During the pandemonium after winning the Oscar for Best Actor, Michael B. Jordan was the man about town, and during one particular street interview, the Oscar winner was asked what his favorite movie was. His answer? Miyazaki’s Princess Mononoke. It makes sense; he’s been vocal about Naruto’s influence on Creed III, for example.
Anime: Spirited Away
In 2018, Ariana Grande posted an image of a Spirited Away tattoo of Chihiro on her Instagram Story, explaining its meaning with the following text.
“Chihiro’s growth into a capable individual is a core factor to the movement of Spirited Away’s plot. During her adventure in the Spirit World, she matures from an easily-scared girl with a child-like personality to match her age to a hard-working, responsible, and brave young girl who has learned to put her fears aside for those she cares for.”
“To protect her friends and rescue her parents from a spell that has turned them into livestock, Chihiro sheds her former personality and adapts to her environment to become a courageous, quick-witted and reliable girl.”
Anime: It’s hard to say…
When Uzi gets asked about his favorite anime, you may not get the answer you’d expect. Sometimes they may just say, “me,” while other times, they’re seemingly so into Steven Universe that they got a pink diamond implanted in their forehead. You’d assume Naruto if you listen to “Sasuke” enough, but truth be told, Uzi may just like so much anime that they don’t have a favorite off top. When asked if they have a favorite anime series during a trip to Icebox, they shook their head no before shouting out Attack on Titan and JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Stone Ocean.
Anime: Fist of the North Star
During his retirement tour, John Cena held an appearance at the 2026 FAN EXPO New Orleans, where fans could ask him questions. One fan asked him about his favorite anime, and while Cena admitted that he doesn’t “watch a ton of anime,” he said that as a kid, he “loved Fist of the North Star,” talking about its post-apocalyptic vibe before warning the child not to watch it at their age.
Anime: Death Note
The Transformers star told Seventeen that she got into anime like many fans did: through Adult Swim. “They had a lot of anime cartoons on, like Cowboy Bebop and InuYasha,” she shared. “That’s when I first started seeing it in cartoon form and actually started researching it.” She’s spoken about anime in other interviews, including telling EW that she could see a Sailor Moon live-action remake working. One of her biggest anime shouts has been through cosplay, including this Death Note-inspired look she pulled off with her husband, MGK.
Anime: Too many to name one
During a Reddit AMA (remember those?) in 2013, the legendary Robin Williams let it be known that when it came to anime, he knew ball. He stated that he’d been into collecting anime since the laserdisc (you likely don’t remember those), and named his five favorite anime films: Cowboy Bebop, Neon Genesis Evangelion, Akira, Ghost in the Shell, and Blood: The Last Vampire. It wasn’t the first time he’d mentioned his love for anime, either; during the press run for his film Robots, Williams was quoted as saying that he was “a big fan of Japanese animation” because, in Japan, “every film pushes the envelope a little further.” Four years after his death, Williams’ daughter posted images of his figurine collection, which included figures from Appleseed and other anime he appreciated, in an effort to properly identify what he was holding onto. Again, Robin Williams knew ball.
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