Summary
The world of anime is huge, but most fans can agree that there’s a lack of racial diversity. Characters from varying racial backgrounds are uncommon in anime, but a few franchises are becoming more inclusive. There have been someblack anime charactersthat appeared in some old-school shows, but some are controversial because of their portrayal and looks.
Luckily for fans, the shows of today are on the road to including more black characters and representing them respectfully. Many have appeared as key supporting characters, but some shows have them as leading characters. Either way, these characters are memorable and aresome of the best charactersin the anime world.
As quite a few anime do not specify race, ambiguous characters are going to generally be avoided. This includesYakitate!! Japan’s Ken andBobobo-bo Bo-bobo’s protagonist.
Updated on Jun 05, 2025, by Mark Sammut:Black anime characters are fairly rare, and that pool shrinks considerably if bit-part players who are mostly there for a brief appearance are removed. Still, there are several notable characters out there. This article has been updated with Musa Kamara from Run With the Wind, who is arguably one of the more realistic and ground black characters in anime history.
A young Afro-Caribbean woman who was a slave in her youth and managed to escape to join the revolution against slavery.Annettewasborn with strong magical powersbecause her parents were descendants of orishas/divine spirits. She met her mentor, Cecile, shortly after, and learned how to both use her magic and fight with a sword.
Because of her harsh background, Annette often struggles to empathize with her comrades and their problems. However, she learns to be more patient with them and strives to do better, so they can all work together with no issues.
Beautiful, exotic, and confident,Caldinamight not look like much at first glance, but she’s a pretty deadly warrior. She’san accomplished dancer,card games, and games of chance, but her true talent shines as an illusionist.
Caldina is great at almost anything she does and was even recruited by Zagato for her assassin skills. She eventually deserts him after she’s defeated by Fuu and becomes a confidante for Ascot, whom she treats as a younger brother.
A South African teen who joins the Juken Club alongside his childhood friend, Souichiro. Thanks to the training he’s done,Bobbecomes one of the physically most powerful members of the club. If his physical strength isn’t enough to scare people, his main style of fighting is using Capoeira, a Brazilian dance-based style of martial arts that makes him unique and stand out from the group.
The anime doesn’t give Bob the credit he’s due, butTenjho Tengefans knowthe manga gives him everything he deserves.Overall, Bob is a great character who was one of the first POC characters to be part of the main cast in anime.
While technically featuring two protagonists in Kakeru and Haiji,Run With the Windis closer to an ensemble piece, especially since the story emphasizes the importance of teamwork and connecting with others. Kakeru’s entire character development revolves around him gradually learning to trust his University dormitory mates, nearly all of whom are relative beginners when it comes to marathon running. The first half of the anime revolves around the characters' training and, more importantly, developing stronger friendships, with the second half being dedicated to the actual races. One of thebest sports anime,Run With the Windis an easy recommendation for both genre beginners and veterans.
A transfer student from Tanzania,Musa Kamarais one of the best-roundedblack anime characters. Although his background is referenced on occasion, he is never defined by his race or succumbs to stereotypical characterization. He is just a three-dimensional figure who has way more going on than just taking part in races, and he is very likable.
Thedemon weapon partner of Sid Barrett,Mirais also an instructor at Death Weapon Meister Academy. She holds the school in high regard and is a strong believer in following the rules. She doesn’t let emotion get in the way of making decisions and often advises her peers to do the same.
Though cynical and quite cold to her peers, Mira is a passionate and caring teacher toward her students. While fans don’t get to see much of her combat abilities, Mira is known to be skilled in hand-to-hand combat which is a rarity among Demon Weapons.
He might’ve appeared late in the series, butOnyankoponhas earned his spot as one of the best supporting characters inAttack on Titan. Since his appearance, Onyankopon has proven to be a valuable ally and willingly shared the technology of his and his comrades’ home with the Eldians. He’s a relatively peaceful guy whogets along with the main castand they have a mutual respect for him.
Even after the Survey Corps was locked up, Onyankopon proved to be a trustworthy ally when he freed them and told them he knew nothing about Yelena and Zeke’s euthanasia plan. As the only one who could pilot the flying boat, Onyankopon made it his mission to get his comrades as close to Eren as possible even with the odds stacked against him.
24S.A.M (Cannon Busters)
A Friendly Robot Who Turns Into A Lethal Weapon When Her Friends Are In Danger
A robot that’s programmed for friendship andgrows as the series goes on.Because of this programming,S.A.M.is a pretty sweet girl who just wants to befriend everyone around her. This does make her come as naive and let some people take advantage of that. S.A.M. She also can’t process when someone insults her or disrespects her, and just brushes it off.
Overall, S.A.M. is just a sweet girl that fans can’t help but love even if she’s oblivious to things around her. However, S.A.M. is extremely protective over her friends and transforms into a pretty terrifying weapon if they’re ever in danger.
Daruihas had quite an interesting life so far. He was a student of the Third Raikage who taught himhow to use black lightningand is the second person to know how to use it. He’s a pretty powerful shinobi and almost defeated the Gold and Silver Brothers single-handedly which is pretty impressive since they were using the Tools of the Sage of Six Paths. Darui is also the right-hand man and bodyguard to the Fourth Raikage and comes off as more mature than him.
Though often apologizing for the Fourth Raikage’s impulsive actions, Darui highly respects him and is quick to defend him if anyone says something negative. During the Fourth Shinobi War, Darui was the leader of the Allied Shinobi Forces First Division. After the series ends, Darui is now the Fifth Raikage, showing that he’s only gotten stronger.
She might be a supporting character, butMiyukiis Dan’smechanic and a really good one at that.Her contributions to Dan and his team are large and he should be grateful that someone as amazing as Miyuki is helping him. She’s more than happy to help out and keep their Big Foots up and running.
Miyuki is just the total package having beauty and brains. She even remains friendly with Dan (whom she has feelings for) after she learns that he has feelings for Rouge.
Alongtime friend of Shinra and Arthur,and a Third Generation pyrokinetic.Ogunis a Fire Soldier who is extremely powerful and has some pretty awesome abilities at his disposal. He’s able to create his own flames unlike Second Generations who can only control existing flames. He uses his abilities to create multiple spears and sword-like weapons to use in battle, usually by throwing them.
What makes Ogun stand out is his Flamy Ink ability in which he tattoos his flames onto his skin. This ability greatly increases his strength, but it does come at the risk of him overheating quicker. Ogun sparingly uses this ability, but when he does, it looks awesome.
