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Stand By Me Doraemon 2 Film Stays at #2, Live-Action 1/100,000 Opens at #4

Demon Slayer - Kimetsu no Yaiba – The Movie: Mugen Train stayed at #1 for its seventh weekend. It earned 1,032,345,100 yen (about US$9.63 million) from Friday to Sunday. The film has now sold a total of 20,532,177 tickets for 27,512,483,050 yen (about US$265 million) in 45 days.

It has now earned more than James Cameron's Titanic (26.2 billion yen) to become the second highest-earning film of all time in Japan. Only Spirited Away (30.8 billion yen) now sits above it. Mugen Train already topped China's Legend of Deification as the highest-grossing animated film worldwide in 2020, and it displaced Dolittle as the #6 film worldwide in 2020.

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 stayed at #2 in its second weekend, and it earned 294,477,450 (about US$2.82 million) from Friday to Sunday. The film has now earned a cumulative total of 1,108,062,500 yen (about US$10.62 million).

The film sold 305,000 tickets and earned 386 million yen (about US$3.69 million) to rank at #2 in its opening weekend. 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).

The live-action film of Kaho Miyasaka's 1/100,000 manga ranked at #4 in its opening weekend.

The film opened on November 27. Shogakukan announced the live-action film in 2018, and it was previously slated to open in 2019, but did not open that year.

GENERATIONS from EXILE TRIBE member Alan Shirahama plays Ren Kiritani, the popular and handsome member of the kendo club, while Yuna Taira plays Rino Sakuragi, the kendo club manager and part of a circle of friends that also includes Ren.

1/100,000 is a spinoff series of Miyasaka's Akai Ito manga, and centers on the characters Rino Sakuragi and Ren Kiritani. Rino has been in a group of friends with her crush Kiritani since junior high school. Rino has never been comfortable with herself, and she is very shy when it comes to talking to the popular Kiritani.

Miyasaka launched 1/100,000 in Shogakukan's Cheese! magazine in August 2015, and ended it in August 2018. Shogakukan published the manga's ninth and final compiled book volume in October 2018.

Kyoto Animation's Violet Evergarden: The Movie anime film went from #9 back to #7 in tickets sold in its 11th weekend. The film earned 24,745,650 yen (about US$237,300) from Friday to Sunday. The film has now earned a cumulative total of 1,973,168,630 yen (about US$18.92 million). The film has consistently ranked in the Japanese box office's top 10 in all 11 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.

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 #6 to #8 in its third weekend. The film earned 22,376,200 yen (about US$214,500) from Friday to Sunday, and has earned a cumulative total of 212,787,440 yen (about US$2.04 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 #7 to #10 in tickets sold in its fifth weekend. The film earned 15,901,370 yen (about US$152,400) from Friday to Sunday, and has earned a cumulative total of 361,624,250 yen (about US$3.46 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.

The theatrical screenings of Grisaia: Phantom Trigger the Animation Stargazer, the sequel to the Grisaia: Phantom Trigger anime, opened at #1 in the mini-theater rankings in Japan. The screenings opened on November 27.

The first Grisaia: Phantom Trigger anime based on Frontwing's game of the same name opened in March 2019 at Tokyo's EJ Anime Theater Shinjuku and at four other theaters in Japan.

Kadokawa screened the 4K HDR version of the 1995 film Gamera: Guardian of the Universe film on November 27, and it ranked at #2 in the mini-theater rankings in its opening weekend. The film and two other Heisei-era Gamera films will receive a 4K HDR Blu-ray Disc release in Japan on January 29.

Bandai Namco Arts opened a screening of Gainax's Gunbuster OVAs in two parts on November 27. The first part opened at #5 in the mini-theater rankings, while the second part opened at #3 in the mini-theater rankings.

The theatrical screening of the seventh, eighth, and ninth episodes of the Sōkyū no Fafner THE BEYOND anime ranked at #4 mini-theater rankings in Japan in its third 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

Update: Demon Slayer – Kimetsu no Yaiba – The Movie: Mugen Train sold 715,200 tickets for 1.005 billion yen (about US$9.6 million) from Saturday to Sunday. Ticket sales dropped only 4.8% compared to the previous weekend (which was followed by a holiday on Monday), and its weekend box office dropped ony 2.7%.

Stand By Me Doraemon 2 sold 235,000 tickets from Saturday to Sunday, and has now sold a total of 880,000 tickets.

Source: Eiga.com