I stood in a Discord thread as the announcement dropped — Prime Video had snagged The Ghost in the Shell and everyone in the room went quiet. You could feel the excitement shrink into a wary question: is this a win or another missed moment? I want you to hold that doubt with me for the next few minutes.
Prime Video announced a global anime push at its International Originals showcase — and then mostly went quiet
I watched the reveal live: Prime Video’s vice president for APAC and ANZ, Gaurav Gandhi, framed anime as an “explosive growth” category and positioned the streamer as a future hub for the medium. The headline grab — Science Saru’s new The Ghost in the Shell landing on Prime — sounded like a declaration of intent, not a casual license deal. ([gamesradar.com](https://www.gamesradar.com/entertainment/anime-shows/watch-out-crunchyroll-prime-video-is-making-a-play-to-become-the-preferred-destination-for-anime-starting-with-this-ghost-in-the-shell-exclusive/?utm_source=openai))
But here’s the catch: the fan reaction was equal parts thrilled and suspicious. You don’t have to be cynical to notice a pattern. Prime makes big licensing plays, then treats promotion like an afterthought. I say this because the announcements arrive with a drumroll, but the follow-through is paper-thin — a mask that looks like effort but peels off under scrutiny.
Prime Video has good shows on its roster — few people know about them
Look around: Netflix and Crunchyroll get shouted about constantly, while Hulu and other services trade in the same blasé energy Prime seems to prefer. I listen to community chatter; it’s rare someone credits Prime for building hype the way Netflix or Crunchyroll do. That matters because a release without promotion loses momentum the instant it drops.
You could list Prime’s legitimate wins — from newer studio hits to classic titles — and still arrive at the same conclusion: visibility, not catalogue, is the limiter. Studios and creators often end up doing the marketing work themselves while the platform stays silent.
Destiny awaits. Mobile Suit Gundam GQuuuuuux streaming now on Prime Video. pic.twitter.com/hS131J5yp3
— Prime Video (@PrimeVideo) April 8, 2025
Prime slipped AI dubs into its player — fans and rights-holders pushed back hard
People noticed a subtle change: English and Latin American Spanish dubs were labeled “AI beta” on several titles, including Banana Fish and No Game No Life Zero. That rollout touched off a chain reaction — critics, voice actors, and the IP holders all pushed back, and Prime pulled some of those AI dubs soon after. ([archive.ph](https://archive.ph/2025.12.05-014908/https%3A/www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2025-12-03/amazon-streamed-ai-english-dubs-on-banana-fish-no-game-no-life-zero-pet-anime/.231513?utm_source=openai))
When rights-holders like Kadokawa and Sentai/HIDIVE said they hadn’t approved the dubs, the situation stopped being experimental and started being a trust problem. I’ve spoken with voice actors and localization pros: this isn’t just about sound quality, it’s about creative stewardship.
Why is Prime Video bad for anime?
If you want a short answer: inconsistent promotion, questionable localization choices, and a pattern of letting the studio or fandom carry the conversation. You could chalk it up to corporate inertia, but that misses the practical effect — shows fail to build shared, week-to-week momentum. Fans stop checking in when they can’t rely on a platform to make a title feel like an event.
There was a clumsy hiring hint after the backlash — and then the hint disappeared
I follow industry hiring and rumor threads. Shortly after the AI dub uproar, a listing for a “creative director of dubbing” tied to Prime’s AI effort appeared and vanished within 24 hours, a move that only fanned the flames. Reporting at the time called out the post and its quick removal. ([gizmodo.com](https://gizmodo.com/prime-video-sucks-for-anime-science-saru-the-ghost-in-the-shell-exclusive-streaming-2000723977?utm_source=openai))
Whether that job ever meant a real change or was PR damage control is beside the point: fans watched the company respond in small, quiet ways rather than rebuild trust at scale.
Will The Ghost in the Shell stream on Prime Video?
Yes — Prime holds global streaming rights for the Science Saru adaptation (with the usual regional exceptions), which is why this matters beyond fandom bragging rights. A work as culturally significant as The Ghost in the Shell could reset perceptions if Prime treats it like the flagship it is. ([gamesradar.com](https://www.gamesradar.com/entertainment/anime-shows/watch-out-crunchyroll-prime-video-is-making-a-play-to-become-the-preferred-destination-for-anime-starting-with-this-ghost-in-the-shell-exclusive/?utm_source=openai))
Real-world lesson: hype needs scaffolding — not silence
When Netflix mishandled releases in the past, it had to learn the social rhythm of weekly drops and digital watercoolers. I watched that correction happen: weekly rollouts plus visible promotion create conversations that keep shows alive. Prime could copy that playbook, but copying requires deliberate attention, not accidental distribution.
If Prime wants to be the “preferred destination,” per Gaurav Gandhi’s claim, it will need more than rights and occasional posts — it must build habit, discoverability, and respect for the people who make the shows. ([gamesradar.com](https://www.gamesradar.com/entertainment/anime-shows/watch-out-crunchyroll-prime-video-is-making-a-play-to-become-the-preferred-destination-for-anime-starting-with-this-ghost-in-the-shell-exclusive/?utm_source=openai))
Cost and credibility are not mutually exclusive
There’s an argument that doing proper English dubs costs money — it does. The oft-cited figure for a professional dub on a show like Banana Fish lands around $54,000 (€45,700). That expense would be a drop for a company of Amazon’s size, and spending it would signal care to fans and creators alike. ([moneytransfers.com](https://moneytransfers.com/currency-transfer/usd-to-eur-forecast?utm_source=openai))
Instead, the cheap shortcut of AI labelling and quiet rollbacks created a different cost: erosion of trust. Once fans view your platform as a place where “AI slop” replaces human craft, they cancel first and ask questions later.
Small changes, big signals
Promote weekly. Credit the people who localize and voice your work. Make discoverability obvious on the homepage and in the app. These are low-glamour moves, but they’re the ones that turn a catalogue into culture — and culture is what drives subscriptions and word-of-mouth.
I don’t want you to be satisfied with optimism; I want you to be strategic about it. If Prime cares, it can show it. If it doesn’t, the community will vote with attention — and dollars.
Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, what’s next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who.
So here’s the question I’ll leave you with: will Prime treat The Ghost in the Shell like a turning point, or will it be another high-profile exclusive that quietly fades into its self-made graveyard of hype?