Hardwood timber MAPPA CEO Wants More Chainsaw Man Home Video Sales
by Danica Davidson
May 18, 2023
Anime studio MAPPA put all its production costs into making Chainsaw Man, and were able to pull it off. But CEO Manabu Ohtsuka still wishes more people would buy Chainsaw Man through DVD and Blu-ray instead of streaming.
“To be perfectly honest, I wish [Chainsaw Man] could have reached more of the audience that pays for home video releases,” he told Tokyo Keizai during an interview.
But he also acknowledged that, money-wise, Chainsaw Man has been doing just fine replenishing all the money put into its production. “As far as investment goes, one could say it was a complete success. However, I am not satisfied that we were able to bring out the same kind of impact as Jujutsu Kaisen, which we worked on right before [Chainsaw Man].”
Putting all their production money into it was a risk, and he says that in the future they don’t plan to take the same risk for all their anime. He also noted that MAPPA had to deal with things like licensing and merchandise planning for Chainsaw Man all on their own, whereas in the past they would have gotten help from elsewhere. He views dealing with these issues as a learning experience for the company.
While more and more anime is being streamed, many people still prefer to buy their favorites on home video.
VIZ Media publishes the original Chainsaw Man manga by Tatsuki Fujimoto, and gave this description for the first volume:
“Denji’s a poor young man who’ll do anything for money, even hunting down devils with his pet devil Pochita. He’s a simple man with simple dreams, drowning under a mountain of debt. But his sad life gets turned upside down one day when he’s betrayed by someone he trusts. Now with the power of a devil inside him, Denji’s become a whole new man—Chainsaw Man!”
Source: ANN
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Danica Davidson is the author of the bestselling Manga Art for Beginners with artist Melanie Westin, plus its sequel, Manga Art for Everyone, and the first-of-its-kind manga chalk book Chalk Art Manga, both illustrated by professional Japanese mangaka Rena Saiya. Check out her other comics and books at www.danicadavidson.com.