Why was ‘Attack on Titan’ removed from Netflix?

Some anime series manage to make a global impact thanks to their universal themes, brilliant animation, and fantastic plotting. Attack on Titan, based on a long-running manga series of the same name, is one such show.

The series, which is set in a post-apocalyptic world in which humans live in walled off cities to protect them from gigantic, humanoid “titans,” first aired 2013. The finale was recently released, on November 5 2023, to critical acclaim. Although only four seasons were produced during this decade-long period, the anime grew a huge, global fanbase, many of which weren’t familiar with the original manga before they got hooked on the show.

For a while, the first season of the anime was on Netflix for many of the streaming giant’s users. However, as of June this year it appears to have disappeared from the service, leaving many fans annoyed (especially as it was so close to the finale). So why was Attack on Titan removed from Netflix? And where can you watch it now?

Why was Attack on Titan removed from Netflix?

The short answer is that we don’t know exactly why Attack on Titan was removed from Netflix. However, it’s almost certainly to do with licensing and the geographical location of the viewer.

The most likely answer for its disappearance from U.S Netflix is that whatever license the tech company had to air it has expired. This could also be to do with the fact that anime specific streaming service Crunchyroll is in the middle of producing an English dub version of the show’s later seasons.

The streaming titan only ever had the first season available to view for Western viewers anyway, so fans who were hoping to catch up on the entire series were always going to be disappointed.

With that said, many Asian countries like Singapore do currently have the show available on Netflix. So, with the right VPN, you can still watch it using that platform.

Where can I watch Attack on Titan?

As mentioned above, if you’re willing to use a VPN you can access Attack on Titan via Netflix still, although it won’t be an English dub. This is also true of Disney Plus, which has the show available in certain geographical locations.

Other, easier options include Crunchyroll (of course) and Hulu, which has all of the show available on its service with no need for a VPN. In the U.K. and other English-speaking countries it’s also available on Prime Video.