Demon Slayer Mangaka Honored in TIME 100 Next List

TIME Magazine shared its TIME 100 Next list of most influential up-and-coming people, and there’s a Japanese mangaka honored in 2021. It named Koyoharu Gotouge, the Demon Slayer author, in the Phenoms category. As Viz Media pointed out, this is the first time a mangaka made it onto the list.

When explaining Gotouge’s inclusion, it cited the recent success of the series in Japan and worldwide. In particular, it pointed out how the Demon Slayer movie ended up becoming Japan’s highest grossing film. Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Mugen Train made over $313 million so far.

The movie only accounts for a portion of the mangaka and series’ success. While the Demon Slayer mangaka ended its run in May 2020, continued sales and localized volumes resulted in over 150 million copies of the manga being sold worldwide. A second season of the anime is also in the works. (The first season is available on Crunchyroll, Funimation, Hulu, and Netflix.)

The TIME 100 Next list salutes 100 notable people. The categories include advocates, artists, innovators, leaders, and phenoms from around the world.

The Demon Slayer second season will air in Japan in 2021. Viz Media released the 20th volume of the manga in English in February 2021. Demon Slayer: Hinokami Kepputan is in development for the PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, and PC.