Anime movies have become bigger than ever, and it’s all thanks to R-Rated hits like Chainsaw Man – The Movie: Reze Arc and Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba The Movie: Infinity Castle. One thing these two massive successes have in common is their well-deserved R-Ratings. The demand for boundary-pushing anime movies is large and loud, and there are plenty of modern series with similar controversial content just waiting to be adapted to the big screen.
Many of the best and most popular new-gen anime deserve R-Rated films just as much as Chainsaw Man and Demon Slayer did. Naturally, this includes other battle Shonen anime like Gachiakuta and Hell’s Paradise. It also includes more interesting and unique new-gen anime from a variety of genres, such as Oshi no Ko and The Apothecary Diaries.
Gachiakuta is the Biggest Shonen Anime Hit on Crunchyroll This Year
Gachiakuta has exploded in popularity since premiering this past Summer, and for good reason. It’s easily one of the best-written and most creative battle Shonen in years, and Studio Bones is giving it the same loving treatment with its animation that they’ve been giving My Hero Academia for the past decade. It also has more than enough edge to look natural next to dark Shonen with theatrical releases, like Chainsaw Man and Jujustu Kaisen.
Gachiakuta tells the story of Rudo, a boy out for revenge against the authoritarian and discriminatory society that cast him out, as he fights alongside the Cleaners to survive against the various horrors of the prison he was sentenced to: the Pit. The series’ gritty style is distinct, and it works beautifully for both comedic and action-heavy scenes. Gachiakuta’s fights are exceptional, the Vital Instrument power system is a breath of fresh air, and the supporting cast around Rudo is outstanding, with the women in the cast especially standing out as some of the best-written in all of Shonen.
Dandadan Absolutely Needs an R-Rating For its Movies
Since its first episode, two things have been clear about Dandadan: its quality, and its willingness to present awful, uncomfortable-to-watch scenes on screen. It’s a surreal, genre-blending, upbeat ride with endless imagination, fantastic characters, and some of the best romances in any Shonen. It’s also a series that features an unpleasant number of scenes containing non-consensual sexual situations.
Dandadan’s appeal is simultaneously broad and self-limiting as, despite the content within it that demands an R-Rating, it offers something substantial for fans of sci-fi, fantasy, action, and romance. Momo and Okarun are brilliant leads, and mainstream audiences would inevitably become invested in their love story, the tangled romantic web around them, and the absolutely absurd fights and scenarios they and their friends regularly find themselves in. With how massive Dandadan has already become since premiering last year, it feels like a matter of when, not if, it’ll receive a movie.
The Apothecary Diaries Holds Nothing Back in its Depiction of Life as a Woman in Li
The Apothecary Diaries has quickly become one of the biggest non-action anime of all time and, unsurprisingly, it’s already confirmed to be receiving a theatrical release. The film is currently slated to be released in between the first and second cours of its upcoming third season and, unlike the television series, it doesn’t seem to be adapting the light novels written by Hyūganatsu. This means that the Apothecary Diaries movie will feature a familiar setting, characters, and tone, but a brand-new plot.
As fans of the light novels know, Season 3 onwards of The Apothecary Diaries are going to follow Maomao in significantly different circumstances than the anime has so far, with everyone’s favorite mystery-solving apothecary venturing away from the imperial palace, and the slow-burn romance between her and Jinshi being sidelined. Given that the latter element is one of the biggest draws of the series, it would make total sense for this original movie to center around the two and the palpable sexual tension between them. At the same time, the film shouldn’t shy away from the darker elements of The Apothecary Diaries, which regularly explores the cruel realities of living as a woman in the 15th Century China-inspired nation of Li.
Cyberpunk: Edgerunners Could Decorate Movie Screens in Blood and Gore
While Cyberpunk: Edgerunners initially seemed like a single-season anime, with the announcement of a Season 2, a film should now also be on the table. And, as anyone who’s seen two minutes of the grim, sci-fi action series will know, there is no way for a movie based on the series to have anything but an R-rating. This is because the surprising maturity of the video game adaptation’s story is matched only by the bloodiness and body horror present in its fight scenes.
Season 2 of Cyberpunk: Edgerunners is confirmed to be set in the familiar location of Night City, and to be starring a completely new cast of characters. Hypothetically, an Edgerunners movie could either star a brand-new cast of its own, or the Season 2 cast. However, nothing would get fans more excited than the movie taking advantage of the large time gaps which occur during Season 1, and giving audiences the chance to spend more time with David, Lucy, and Rebecca.
Hell’s Paradise Deserves the Same Film Treatment as Chainsaw Man & Jujutsu Kaisen
It would be downright unfair for Hell’s Paradise to not receive an R-Rated anime movie. For years, the series has been directly compared to Chainsaw Man and Jujutsu Kaisen, with fans labeling them the dark Shonen trinity. And, with Season 2 coming next season, hype around the adventures of Gabimaru is currently stronger than ever.
Most likely, Hell’s Paradise will need a third season to finish adapting Yuji Kaku’s manga. However, there’s also likely to be little enough material left to adapt after Season 2 that the anime could also be completed via a film. Given the tight, focused nature of Hell’s Paradise’s storytelling, it would work better for the movie to directly be a part of the main story, and not its own original tale.
86 Ranks Among the Bleakest and Most Realistic Mecha Anime
86 is the type of anime that would translate to the big screen effortlessly. Like many of the best sci-fi mecha anime, it’s grounded by its characters and politics, dealing with the horror of war, child soldiers, and systemic racism. Combined with its incredible action, and its lack of many of the clichés non-anime fans don’t care for in the medium, an 86 film would have 0 issue appealing to mainstream audiences.
Since 2023, 86 fans have been hoping for any sign of a second season. With there still being none, it’s unlikely viewers would mind waiting even longer, were a film to be announced instead. Ideally, this would be released alongside a recap movie the same way the Chainsaw Man movie was, given it wouldn’t be coming out until 2028, at the earliest, even if it was announced today.
Oshi no Ko Looks Cute, But is Absolutely Not For Kids
One of the best, and most disturbing, movies of all time is Satoshi Kon’s Perfect Blue. This masterfully directed psychological-horror film deals with the thin line between fiction and reality, while digging into the dark underbelly of idol culture. While there have been several great idol anime in recent history with a similarly grim approach, Zombie Land Saga being a stand-out, none deserve to carry Perfect Blue’s cinematic torch better than Oshi no Ko.
Oshi no Ko is a supernatural thriller filled to the brim with mysteries that constantly keep viewers on the edge of their seats. This upcoming Winter, its third season will be airing, and things are bound to get more shocking and twisted than ever. With there only being enough manga material left for one more season after this, Oshi no Ko is practically screaming to go out with a film instead.
Sakamoto Days Can Pay the Ultimate Tribute to John Wick by Moving to Theaters
While Sakamoto Days has been one of the biggest hits in Weekly Shōnen Jump for several years, its anime was met with a middling response, gathering a large, but not especially passionate fandom. This is partially because of the story’s slow start, and partially because it’s a completely action-driven story, and the animation just hasn’t been outstanding enough to capture the incredible fights drawn by Yuto Suzuki in the manga. A Sakamoto Days film could easily fix this issue, and elevate the anime’s reputation tenfold.
Telling the story of Taro Sakamoto, a former hitman turned convenience store owner, Sakamoto Days bares more than a slight resemblance to John Wick. With a cinematic budget and involvement from Suzuki, the fight scenes in a Sakamoto Days movie could absolutely be on par with those of any John Wick movie. Given that a Season 2 of the anime has already been confirmed, and the manga is still running, Sakamoto Days would be wise to go the Demon Slayer approach, and adapt its final arcs via films.
Mobile Suit Gundam: The Witch From Mercury Still Deserves a Sequel
Mobile Suit Gundam: The Witch From Mercury is far and away the most beloved and popular entry in the Gundam franchise of the past 20 years. There are a number of reasons for this, including its stand-alone nature, its exceptional writing and animation, its status as the first Gundam series with a female lead, its school-based setting, and one of the best lesbian romances in anime history at the center of its story. However, the one major issue with Witch From Mercury is its extremely rushed ending; a WfM movie could both tie up all the loose ends from the series, and give fans a better sense of closure.
At the end of Witch From Mercury, newly-wed wives Suletta and Miorine had successfully achieved their personal happy ending, but the world around them remained dominated by the heartless corporations responsible for every problem in the series. A film, or ideally a series of films, could give fans a closer look at what’s become of Suletta and Miorine, as well as at the lives of the expansive supporting cast, and show exactly what they’re doing to combat the brutal status quo they hate so much. Given the way the series ended, it could be difficult to get Suletta and Eri back into mecha battles, but either creative decisions could be made to make it work, or another character could be put at the center of the movies’ fight scenes.
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