Crunchyroll has announced the winners of the 2025 Anime Awards during a star-studded ceremony held in Tokyo, celebrating the best in anime from the past year. With a record-breaking 51 million votes cast by fans worldwide, this year’s event marked the most widely participated edition of the annual celebration of Japanese animation.
Major winners and standout performances
The title of Anime of the Year was awarded to Solo Leveling, which also picked up multiple other honours including Best New Series, Best Action, and Best Main Character for Sung Jinwoo. The popular anime also won Best Score, Best Ending Sequence, and several voice acting accolades across multiple languages.
The Best Film of the Year was awarded to Look Back, while Ninja Kamui took home the award for Best Original Anime. Continuing series Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba remained a fan favourite, winning Best Continuing Series and Best Animation for its Hashira Training Arc.
Musical performances took centre stage during the live ceremony. Hip-hop duo Creepy Nuts, who also won Best Anime Song for “Otonoke” from Dan Da Dan, performed the viral hit live. Celebrated Japanese rock band FLOW delivered a performance of “DAYS” in honour of Eureka Seven’s 20th anniversary, and LiSA returned to perform several of her most iconic tracks, including “gurenge” from Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba.
Celebrity presenters and new award milestone
Now in its ninth year, the Anime Awards was hosted once again by voice actress Sally Amaki and presenter Jon Kabira. A range of global celebrities presented the awards, including Grammy winner Kacey Musgraves, Stranger Things stars Finn Wolfhard and Gaten Matarazzo, reggaeton artist J Balvin, and musicians such as Rina Sawayama and Pabllo Vittar. Notable Japanese presenters included Mayu Matsuoka, Dean Fujioka, and Kanata Hongo.
The 2025 ceremony introduced a new category: the Global Impact Award. This inaugural honour was given to Attack on Titan, recognising the series’ cultural influence and significance across the world. Yuichiro Hayashi of MAPPA accepted the award on behalf of the production team. The final film in the saga, Attack on Titan: THE LAST ATTACK, premiered in late 2024, concluding a globally celebrated run.
Record-breaking fan participation and global reach
Crunchyroll’s President Rahul Purini commented on the extraordinary level of global engagement, stating, “Fans form deep emotional connections to anime. These are not just series, films or songs, but rather works of art that help define the identity of anime fans.” He added, “With an incredible 51 million votes this year, the 2025 Anime Awards are celebrating the creators in Japan who have captured the hearts of fans and are powering anime’s prominence in global pop culture.”
The awards received votes from fans across numerous countries, with top participation coming from Brazil, Canada, Chile, France, Germany, India, Mexico, Spain, the United Kingdom, and the United States. This year marked the first time both Canada and Chile made it into the top 10 voting regions.
The ceremony was broadcast live from the Grand Prince Hotel Shin Takanawa in Tokyo. The pre-show was hosted by Crunchyroll’s Lauren Moore and Tim Lyu, and featured appearances from global entertainers including drag performer Plastique Tiara, boxer Ben Whittaker, VTuber Ironmouse, and YouTube creator Gigguk.
The event was made possible with the support of Sony Music Solutions Inc., part of Sony Music Entertainment (Japan) Inc., and Dempsey Productions. Fans who missed the event can stream it soon via Crunchyroll’s YouTube and Twitch channels, as well as on Sony Pictures Core and Sony’s global YouTube platforms.
