News

Demon Slayer Anime Film Slides Back to #2 in 16th Weekend

Demon Slayer - Kimetsu no Yaiba – The Movie: Mugen Train dropped back to #2 in the Japanese box office in terms of tickets sold in its 16th weekend, after two weekends spent back at the top. The film sold 105,000 tickets over the weekend and earned 168,764,100 yen (about US$1.60 million) from Friday to Sunday. It has sold 26.88 million tickets for a cumulative total of 36,884,239,450 yen (about US$351.6 million).

After 12 consecutive weeks at #1 in the box office in Japan, the film dropped to #2 during the January 9-10 weekend, its 13th weekend. During that weekend, the film sold 425,000 tickets and earned 677,783,450 yen (about US$6.57 million) from Friday to Sunday. The film returned to the #1 spot in its 14th weekend.

The film has surpassed Hayao Miyazaki's 2002 Spirited Away, its last rival for all-time highest earnings in Japanese box office history. (Spirited Away earned 30.8 billion yen in its original run, but has since earned a total of 31.68 billion yen after this summer's revival screenings.) The Demon Slayer film is now also at least the second highest-earning anime film of all time worldwide, topping your name.'s worldwide US$357,986,087 earnings.

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. Mugen Train began holding immersive MX4D and 4DX screenings on Saturday, December 26.

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.

Gintama The Final, the new anime film of Hideaki Sorachi's Gintama manga, dropped from #2 to #3 in its fourth weekend. The film earned 102,029,700 yen (about US$972,600) from Friday to Sunday, and has earned a cumulative total of 1,266,877,640 yen (about US$12.07 million).

The film opened at #1 in Japan on January 8 and ended Demon Slayer - Kimetsu no Yaiba – The Movie: Mugen Train's 12 consecutive weekends at the top of the Japanese box office. The film is based on the finale of the original manga, combined with new story elements.

The manga also inspired a new net anime special titled Gintama The Semi-Final with a story that will be a two-episode prequel to the film. The net anime premiered exclusively in Japan on the online dTV service on January 15. The film also has a novel by Mirei Miyamoto that shipped on January 8.

Sorachi's original "science-fiction period-drama comedy" manga began in 2003 and ended in June 2019 with over 55 million copies in circulation. The latest anime series premiered in July 2018. The manga has also inspired various original video anime (OVA), event anime, two live-action films, and two live-action net spinoffs. Viz Media published the manga's first 23 volumes in English.

Studio 4°C's anime film of Akihiro Nishino's Poupelle of Chimney Town (Entotsu-chō no Poupelle) picture book dropped from #3 to #4 in its sixth weekend. The film earned 87,500,900 yen (about US$834,000) from Friday to Sunday. It has earned a cumulative total of 1,795,662,350 yen (about US$17.11 million).

The film ranked at #4 and earned 322,998,700 (about US$3.13 million) in its opening weekend. The film opened in Japan on December 25.

Yusuke Hirota (CGI director for Berserk films, Harmony) directed the film, with Nishino serving as production supervisor, original creator, and writer, while Atsuko Fukushima (Genius Party, Robot Carnival) designed the characters.

Pokémon the Movie: Secrets of the Jungle (Gekijōban Pocket Monster Koko), the 23rd anime film in the Pokémon franchise, dropped from #5 to #7 in its sixth weekend. It earned 45,033,200 yen (about US$429,300) from Friday to Sunday. It has earned a cumulative total of 1,480,310,250 yen (about US$14.11 million).

The film ranked at #2 and earned 378,195,750 yen (about US$3.66 million) in its opening weekend. The film opened on December 25 in Japan. Toho had originally planned to open the film earlier last year on July 10, but the staff delayed the film due to the spread of COVID-19.

The film will then open in the West in 2021.

Tetsuo Yajima returned from 2018's Pokémon the Movie: The Power of Us film at OLM, and co-wrote the film's script with Pokémon series writer Atsuhiro Tomioka.

The live-action film of Kaiu Shirai and Posuka Demizu's The Promised Neverland manga dropped from #7 to #8 in its seventh weekend. It earned 35,453,300 yen (about US$338,000) from Friday to Sunday. It has sold 1.4 million tickets to earn a cumulative total of 1,809,624,500 yen (about US$17.25 million).

The film earned 373,372,850 yen (about US$3.6 million) in its first three days. The film opened on December 18.

Yūichirō Hirakawa (live-action ERASED film, live-action Rookies series) directed the film. Noriko Gotou penned the film's script. Hirakawa and Gotou worked together on the live-action Erased film.

Shirai and Demizu launched The Promised Neverland manga in Shueisha's Weekly Shonen Jump magazine in August 2016, and ended it on June 15. An anime adaptation premiered in January 2019. Aniplex of America streamed the anime on Crunchyroll, Hulu, Funimation, and HIDIVE as it aired. Toonami began airing the anime in April 2019. A second season of the anime was scheduled to premiere in October, but was delayed to January 7 due to the effect of COVID-19 on the production.

The live-action film of Tomoko Yamashita's The Night Beyond the Tricornered Window (Sankaku Mado no Sotogawa wa Yoru) boys-love manga dropped from #4 to #9 in its second weekend. The film earned 36,837,070 yen (about US$351,200) from Friday to Sunday, and has earned a cumulative total of 217,898,070 yen (about US$2.07 million).

The film opened on January 22 at #4. The film was previously scheduled to premiere on October 30 last year, but was delayed until 2021 due to the effects of the new coronavirus disease (COVID-19).

The film stars Masaki Okada (live-action Gintama, Space Brothers, Future Diary, left in picture left) as Rihito Hiyakawa, and Jun Shison (live-action anohana, Ressha Sentai Tokkyūger, right) as Kosuke Mikado.

The Stand By Me Doraemon 2 CG anime film dropped off the top 10 in its 11th weekend, but it still earned 17,871,950 yen (about US$170,400) from Friday to Sunday, and has earned a cumulative total of 2,693,514,750 yen (about US$25.68 million).

The Natsume Yujin-cho: Ishi Okoshi to Ayashiki Raihōsha (Natsume's Book of Friends: The Waking Rock and the Strange Visitor) anime film also dropped off the top 10 in its third weekend, but it still earned 16,018,200 yen (about US$152,700) from Friday to Sunday, and has earned a cumulative total of 135,740,100 yen (about US$1.29 million).

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