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Live-Action Hen na Ie Stays at #1, 1st Haikyu!! Final Film at #2

The live-action film adaptation of Uketsu's Hen na Ie (The Strange House) novel stayed at #1 for its third consecutive weekend. The film sold 389,600 tickets for 491,084,860 yen (about US$3.23 million) over the weekend. The film has sold a total of 2.07 million tickets for a cumulative earning of 2,622,536,990 yen (about US$17.28 million).

The film opened on March 15. The film sold 344,000 tickets and earned 474 million yen (about US$3.13 million) in its first three days.

The film stars Shōtarō Mamiya (live-action Blue Giant, Tokyo Revengers) as Amamiya, Jirō Satō (live-action Gintama) as Kurihara, and Rina Kawaei (live-action Ajin) as Yūki.

Asukashinsha published the first novel in July 2021, and the second novel on December 15. The novel tells the mystery of a house with a room that had no doors, no windows, and is tucked away, making it look like it was just a wall. But the house holds some very dark secrets.

Kyō Ayano launched novel's manga adaptation on Ichijinsha's comic HOWL web manga service in January 2023. Seven Seas licensed the manga under the title The Strange House.

Gekijōban Haikyu!! Gomi Suteba no Kessen (Haikyu!! the Movie: Decisive Battle at the Garbage Dump), the first film in the two-part Haikyu!! Final sequel film project, stayed at #2 in its seventh weekend. The film sold 333,500 tickets for 487,911,740 yen (about US$3.21 million) over the weekend for a cumulative total of 6.10 million tickets sold for 8,750,333,750 yen (about US$57.65 million).

The film premiered in Japan on February 16 and is also screening in IMAX. Susumu Mitsunaka (first, third Haikyu!! television anime) both directed and wrote the script for the film.

The film sold 1,529,000 tickets and earned 2,230,465,540 yen (about US$14.83 million) in its first three days of screening. The film now has the biggest opening weekend for a film so far this year in Japan, beating Mobile Suit Gundam Seed FREEDOM anime film's 1,065,983,130 yen opening weekend earnings.

The 2024 Doraemon film Eiga Doraemon: Nobita no Chikyū Symphony (Doraemon the Movie: Nobita's Earth Symphony) film stayed at #3 in its fifth weekend at the Japanese box office. The film sold 263,100 tickets and earned 318,133,190 yen (about US$2.09 million) from Friday to Sunday. The film has sold a total of 2.59 million tickets to earn 3,103,494,820 yen (about US$20.45 million).

The film opened at #1 on March 1. The film sold 538,000 tickets from Friday to Sunday for 655,555,580 yen (about US$4.37 million) in its first weekend.

The new film has a music theme, as Doraemon and friends go on an adventure to meet new buddies, connect to people with music, and save the world from a crisis.

Kazuaki Imai (Doraemon the Movie: Nobita's Treasure Island, Doraemon the Movie: Nobita's New Dinosaur) directed the film. Teruko Utsumi, a writer for the Doraemon television anime, penned the script for the film. The television anime's current cast members reprised their roles for the film.

Godzilla Minus One, Takashi Yamazaki's new film in TOHO's Godzilla franchise, dropped down from #5 to #7 in its 22nd weekend in the box office. The film earned 126,954,120 yen (about US$836,500) from Friday to Sunday. The film has sold a total of 4.7 million tickets, and earned a total of 7,137,130,300 yen (about US$47.03 million).

The film opened in Japan on November 3, 2023 ("Godzilla Day"), which was the anniversary of the first Godzilla film's November 3, 1954 release. The new film screened at The Tokyo International Film Festival (TIFF) as the closing film of last year's event on November 1.

The film sold 648,600 tickets for 1,041,193,460 yen (about US$6.93 million) in its first three days in the Japanese box office. The film sold 14.7% more tickets and earned 22.8% more in its first three days than the last live-action Japanese Godzilla film, Hideaki Anno and Shinji Higuchi's Shin Godzilla, did in its first three days in 2016. The film has earned over 6.01 billion yen (about US$39.9 million) and sold 3.92 million tickets as of March 3, its 122nd day of screening in Japan. According to Kōgyō Tsūshinsha, the film is now the #1 live-action film released in Japan in 2023 (this includes all live-action films that opened in Japan in 2023, but still earned revenue in 2024).

Godzilla Minus One also won the Best Visual Effects award in the 96th Academy Awards on March 10. It is the first Japanese film to win in this category, and the first Godzilla film to be nominated for an Oscar.

The Mobile Suit Gundam SEED FREEDOM anime film rose back from #10 to #8 in its 10th weekend. The film earned 87,804,990 yen (about US$578,600) from Friday to Sunday. It has sold 2,509,428 million tickets for earned a cumulative total of 4,229,756,590 yen (about US$27.87 million).

The film is screening in 353 cinemas in Japan, and added 4DX, MX4D, and Dolby Cinema screenings starting on February 9.

The film opened at #1 in the Japanese box office, selling 634,182 tickets for 1,065,983,130 yen (about US$7.20 million) in its first three days, marking the Gundam franchise's highest three-day opening in box office earnings. Mobile Suit Gundam SEED FREEDOM opened in Japan on January 26. The film is planned to screen in 56 countries and territories.

Mobile Suit Gundam Seed director Mitsuo Fukuda directed the film at Bandai Namco Filmworks. Fukuda also co-wrote the script along with his late wife Chiaki Morosawa and Liu Goto. Hisashi Hirai (Mobile Suit Gundam Seed) designed the characters.

The live-action film of Fujimomo's Lovesick Ellie (Koi Wazurai no Ellie) manga dropped from #8 to #9 in its third weekend. The film earned 52,361,810 yen (about US$345,000) in its second weekend, for a cumulative earning of 407,144,060 yen (about US$2.68 million).

The live-action film opened in Japan on March 15. The film earned 128,171,750 yen (about US$858,600) in its first three days.

Ryubi Miyase (live-action Ushijima the Loan Shark, Ya Boy Kongming!) stars as Akira Ohmi, while Nanoka Hara (Suzume's title heroine, live-action Wave, Listen to Me!, Don't Call It Mystery) stars as Eriko Ichimura. The two had previously co-starred in the live-action television series Night Doctor and Murai in Love.

Miki Kōichirō (live-action 2020 Yowamushi Pedal) directed the film, with scripts by Satoko Okazaki.

The first film of the two-part anime film adaptation of Inio Asano's Dead Dead Demon's Dededede Destruction manga dropped off the top 10 in its second weekend.

A selection of Jujutsu Kaisen episodes from the "Shibuya Incident" arc debuted at #1 in the mini-theater rankings. The screenings commemorate the release of the fourth and fifth Blu-ray Disc and DVD volumes of the second season of the anime.

Sources: Gundam press release, Kōgyō Tsūshin (link 2, link 3), comScore via KOFIC