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Stand By Me Doraemon 2 Opens at #2 Behind Demon Slayer Film

Demon Slayer - Kimetsu no Yaiba – The Movie: Mugen Train stayed at #1 for its sixth weekend. It sold 748,000 tickets for 1,032,345,100 yen (about US$9.87 million) over the weekend. The film has now sold a total of 19,397,589 tickets for 25,917,043,800 yen (about US$247 million).

The film has now earned more than Makoto Shinkai's your name. (23.35 billion yen) and Disney's Frozen (25.03 billion yen) to become the third highest-earning film of all time in Japan. Only Titanic (26.2 billion yen) and Spirited Away (30.8 billion yen) now sit above it. Mugen Train is now also the second highest-earning anime film in Japan.

Demon Slayer - Kimetsu no Yaiba – The Movie: Mugen Train began screening in 38 IMAX theaters in Japan on October 16. The film had the highest opening weekend globally for the October 16-18 weekend. The film sold 3,424,930 tickets and earned 4,623,117,450 yen (about US$43.85 million) in Japan in its first three days. The film sold 910,507 tickets and earned over 1,268,724,700 yen (about US$12.03 million) on its opening day alone, making it the highest weekday opening day in Japan ever.

The main staff members of the previous television anime returned for the sequel film. Toho and Aniplex are handling the film's distribution in Japan. Funimation and Aniplex of America will screen the film in theaters in North America in early 2021.

The Stand By Me Doraemon 2 CG anime film sold 305,000 tickets and earned 386 million yen (about US$3.69 million) to rank at #2 in its opening weekend. Over its first four days, the film has sold a total of 542,000 tickets and earned a total of 671 million yen (about US$6.41 million). (Monday was a holiday in Japan.)

The film opened in Japan on November 20. The film was originally slated to open in Japan on August 7 until it was delayed due to the new coronavirus disease (COVID-19).

The film's story is largely be based on the franchise's 2000 film Doraemon: Obāchan no Omoide (Doraemon: A Grandmother's Recollections), but adds original elements, including the love story of Shizuka and Nobita that was also present in the previous Stand By Me Doraemon film. The 2000 film, in turn, was based on a chapter from the fourth manga volume.

Ryūichi Yagi and Takashi Yamazaki returned from the first film as directors, and Yamazaki once again penned the script. Masaki Suda performed the film's theme song "Niji" (Rainbow).

The first Stand By Me Doraemon film was the first 3D CG film in the franchise, and it eventually earned 8.38 billion yen (about US$77.16 million) in Japan and over 10 billion yen worldwide (about US$90 million).

Looking for Magical Doremi (Majo Minarai o Sagashite), the brand-new anime film commemorating the 20th anniversary of the Ojamajo Doremi magical girl anime franchise, dropped from #4 to #6 in its second weekend. The film earned 33,600,320 yen (about US$321,300) from Friday to Sunday, and has earned a cumulative total of 154,580,740 yen (about US$1.47 million).

The film opened on November 13 after a COVID-19 delay. It premiered at the Tokyo International Film Festival on November 10. Toei and Toei Animation announced in March that they were postponing the May 15 opening of the movie due to production issues, and later rescheduled the anime for fall. It ranked at #4 in its opening weekend. The film earned 74,061,680 yen (about US$709,100) in its first three days

The story follows 27-year-old Tokyo office worker Mire Yoshizuki who just returned to Japan, 22-year-old fourth-year college student Sora Nagase who aspires to be a teacher, and 20-year-old boyish, part-time Hiroshima okonomiyaki shop worker and freelancer Reika Kawatani. What draws together these three women from completely different walks of life are Magic Spheres. A "New Magical Story" begins when they are mysteriously brought together by chance and embark on a journey.

Junichi Sato (Sailor Moon, Aria, Princess Tutu), the director of the original Ojamajo Doremi anime, directed the new film alongside Yū Kamatani (Precure franchise episode director) at Toei Animation. Midori Kuriyama (episode scriptwriter for Lovely Complex, Heartcatch Precure) and Yoshihiko Umakoshi (Boys Over Flowers, Mushishi) also returned from Ojamajo Doremi as scriptwriter and character designer, respectively, and Umakoshi is also credited as chief animation director. Shouko Nakamura (Doukyusei -Classmates-) is also credited as animation director for the film, and Hiromi Seki led her team as producer.

The Eiga Precure Miracle Leap: Minna to Fushigi na 1-nichi (Everyone and the Mysterious One Day) anime film dropped from #5 to #7 in tickets sold in its fourth weekend. The film earned 23,746,710 yen (about US$227,100) from Friday to Sunday, and has earned a cumulative total of 326,165,020 yen (about US$3.11 million).

The film ranked at #3 and earned earned 107,952,960 yen (about US$1.03 million) over its opening weekend.

The film was originally slated to open on March 20, but was delayed to May 16 in order to help curb the spread of the new coronavirus disease (COVID-19). It was then delayed to October 31.

Kyoto Animation's Violet Evergarden: The Movie anime film dropped from #7 back to #9 in tickets sold in its 10th weekend. The film earned 25,264,700 yen (about US$241,600) from Friday to Sunday. The film has now sold 1,331,085 tickets for a cumulative total of 1,912,896,400 yen (about US$18.31 million) after 10 weeks at the Japanese box office. The film has consistently ranked in the Japanese box office's top 10 in all 10 weeks since its opening.

The film opened in Japan on September 18, and it ranked at #2 in its opening weekend. The film is the first new Japanese anime film (as opposed to compilation films) to open in Dolby Cinemas, with Dolby Cinemas screenings beginning on November 13.

Kyoto Animation postponed the film's opening in Japan due to concerns over the new coronavirus disease (COVID-19). The film was slated to open in Japan on April 24. This was the second delay for the film, as it was originally slated for a January 10, 2020 opening in Japan.

The franchise's separate side-story anime, titled Violet Evergarden I: Eternity and the Auto Memory Doll (Violet Evergarden Gaiden: Eien to Jidō Shuki Ningyō), opened in theaters in Japan last September, and it screened for at least five weeks. The film eventually earned a cumulative total of 831 million yen (about US$7.90 million). Netflix debuted the anime on April 2.

Macoto Tezka's live-action film of his father Osamu Tezuka's Barbara manga opened at #11.

The Monster Strike The Movie: Lucifer Zetsubō no Yoake (Lucifer Dawn of Despair) dropped off the top 10 in its third weekend.

The theatrical screening of the seventh, eighth, and ninth episodes of the Sōkyū no Fafner THE BEYOND anime project topped the mini-theater rankings in Japan in its second weekend. The screenings opened in Japan on November 13, and they earned 38,460,100 yen (about US$368,000) to rank at #1 in the mini-theater ranking in their first three days.

Sources: Kōgyō Tsūshin (link 2), Eiga.com, comScore via KOFIC