Anime characters growing into gods at the end of the story may show how much they have transformed from being mere mortals. Either with great power or spiritual achievement, these individuals achieved something significantly higher than mankind. Some created new deities, some created new worlds, and some relocated to planes of existence that humans didn't access.
Their quests weren't all about being strong—they remade destiny, rewrote nature's laws, or earned reverence from whole civilizations. From holy sacrifices to universal awakenings, all these were eternal changes to their worlds. Here are the 10 anime characters who became gods by the end of their respective series.
Disclaimer: This article reflects the writer's opinion and includes spoilers from the mentioned anime. The list is not ranked in any particular order.
Monkey D. Luffy, Yukiteru, and 8 other anime characters who became gods by the end of their series
1) Monkey D. Luffy (One Piece)

Monkey D. Luffy is the Straw Hat Pirates' free-spirited captain, with an innocent heart, insatiable appetite, and yearning for freedom. But in the last saga of One Piece, Luffy unleashes the complete potential of his Devil Fruit—transforming him into a creature of legendary power.
Not only does he fight like a god, he becomes one, assuming the role of the Sun God Nika, a legendary symbol of freedom. Through this transformation, Luffy acquires powers that break all rules and recreate reality around him. Monkey D. Luffy is one of the anime characters who became gods at the end of their show.
2) Yukiteru Amano (Mirai Nikki)

Yukiteru Amano is the central character of Mirai Nikki, and though he is introverted and passive at the beginning, his character undergoes a dramatic change throughout the series. At first, trapped in a fatal survival game, Yukiteru is a passive observer rather than a combatant. But after suffering repeated losses and disappointments, he is emotionally numb and more resolute.
Following the events of the game, he gets the position of God of Time and Space and has total control over reality. Even with his godhood, he remains emotionally shattered for years until Yuno comes back to him. Yukiteru Amano is among the anime characters who become gods by the end of their series.
3) Griffith (Berserk)

Griffith is the ambitious Band of the Hawk leader in Berserk and has a near-unnatural charisma from the beginning. Having given up his comrades during the Eclipse, he's reborn as Femto, a member of the God Hand—creatures with enormous supernatural power.
Yet his transformation does not end there. Through reincarnation as a bodily form in the mortal world and establishing the utopian city of Falconia, he establishes himself as both ruler and savior. Adored by thousands and immune to war or aging, Griffith is one of the anime characters who becomes a living god by the end of the series.
4) Sosuke Aizen (Bleach)

Sosuke Aizen is the previous captain of Squad 5 in Bleach and the smartest and most cunning character in the series. Despite being serene and polite in appearance, he conceals a horror of desire for power. After merging with the Hogyoku, an unknown artifact that brings one's most intimate wishes, Aizen starts transforming beyond Soul Reapers and Hollows.
His body became something that was no longer recognizable, resistant to regular attacks, and essentially immortal. Even after being sealed, he still emitted an unnatural aura—one that was hauntingly godlike.
5) Lain Iwakura (Serial Experiments Lain)

Lain Iwakura from Serial Experiments Lain begins as a shy, introverted girl who struggles to relate to others in the real world. But as she becomes involved with the Wired—a virtual network that reflects the internet—she gradually unwinds her own identity. With time, Lain becomes a focal presence in the Wired, taking over data, thought, and even memory.
By the conclusion of the series, her physical life is irrelevant, and she exists only as a godlike consciousness in the Wired. Lain essentially becomes the omnipresent force behind all digital reality. This makes Lain one of the anime characters who transforms into a god later in the series.
6) Madoka Kaname (Puella Magi Madoka Magica)

Madoka Kaname begins life as an average middle school student in Puella Magi Madoka Magica, unsure where she belongs in the universe and under too much stress about becoming a magical girl. When she sees her friends become tortured, though, she makes a wish that fundamentally changes the rules of magical girls throughout space and time.
Unlike other anime characters, her decision obliterates the brutal destiny they used to suffer and turns her into a godlike force beyond the comprehension of man. At the end, Madoka is a force of compassion existing outside of time, watching over and helping magical girls throughout all existence.
7) Rimuru Tempest (That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime)

Rimuru Tempest starts That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime as a regular slime with basic objectives, but that is soon changed as they construct a nation and collect strong allies. Throughout the series, Rimuru develops physically and spiritually, obtaining immense magical powers, immortality, and eventually reaching the rank of a True Demon Lord.
By the final story, he achieves godly powers via his transformation into a Great Demon God. Rimuru is able to warp reality, bring back the dead, and manipulate divine laws. He's pretty much a god in everything but name. This places Rimuru among the anime characters who become a god in the series.
8) Shinji Ikari (Neon Genesis Evangelion)

Shinji Ikari is the unwilling pilot of Evangelion Unit-01 in Neon Genesis Evangelion, but by the end of The End of Evangelion, he is something much more than a soldier. Given the option to determine the future of humanity, Shinji becomes the focal point of the Human Instrumentality Project.
His feelings, thoughts, and choices become part of the shared consciousness of humanity, putting him basically in a godlike position. While uncertain and very flawed, Shinji ultimately becomes the one who decides the shape of humanity itself—making him a god by definition.
9) Haruhi Suzumiya (The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya)

Haruhi Suzumiya is bossy, impatient, and fixated on the supernatural—but what makes her truly special is that she doesn't realize she's what she's looking for.
Haruhi possesses the subconscious power to remake reality according to her feelings and wishes, putting her in a god-like position. Whether she changes time, generates alternate realities, or warps the concept of logic itself, she does it all subconsciously. This makes Haruhi Suzumiya one of the anime characters who became a god without being aware of it.
10) Yhwach (Bleach)

Bleach's Yhwach is first introduced as the Quincy leader, but by the last arc, he is something much more. Having absorbed the Soul King—essentially the keystone of the world's balance—Yhwach gains the power to reshape all of reality.
He does not merely want to reign; he wishes to annihilate the idea of death itself and reconstitute life in his own image. With powers that span time, dimensions, and destiny, Yhwach is not merely a threat—he is one of the anime characters who becomes a god by the conclusion of the series.
Final thoughts
From Monkey D. Luffy's ability to become the Sun God to Yukiteru Amano's manipulation of time and space, some anime characters have done what few will ever do. Some, such as Madoka Kaname and Lain Iwakura, abandoned humanity altogether, but others, such as Rimuru Tempest and Griffith, ruled over mortal men as gods.
Whatever they wanted this fate to be or were shaped by circumstance, their godhood changed their worlds in perpetuity. These tales show how even flawed characters can become something unimaginable—and unbeatable.
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