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1st Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle Film Breaks 25-Year Record as #1 Non-English International Film in U.S.
posted on by Anita Tai
The Numbers and Box Office Mojo services reported on Sunday that Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Infinity Castle - Akaza Sairai, the first film in the Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Infinity Castle trilogy, has earned an estimated US$128.6 million in North American markets as of this weekend. It has now become the highest-grossing non-English, international film of all time in that market (unadjusted for inflation), taking the title from 2000's Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (US$$128.1 million).
Box Office Mojo, Deadline, and The Hollywood Reporter also noted that the film has earned an estimated total of US$648 million worldwide as of Sunday, October 12. (The Numbers reports an estimate of US$637 million.) Either total makes the anime film the #5 highest-grossing film of 2025, surpassing How to Train Your Dragon (US$635.7 million). Deadline and The Hollywood Reporter note the film earned as estimated US$336 million in Crunchyroll/Sony markets (which are outside Japan and some other Asia markets) so far, after earning US$3.5 million in 62 markets this weekend. The Numbers adds that it now has the #8 all-time worldwide box office among rated-R films, above 2004's The Passion of the Christ.
Some American films in foreign languages have earned more money in the United States, such as The Passion of the Christ (US$370.8 million). Similarly, some international films in English have earned more money in the United States, such as 2010's The King's Speech (US$138 million).
The first Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle film had sold 67,020,204 tickets worldwide for 82,359,480,810 yen (about US$568 million at the US$1-to-145 yen exchange rate) as of September 22. In particular, it had sold 8.91 million tickets for over US$100 million in the United States, and 23,727,443 tickets for 34,186,470,400 yen (about US$236 million) in Japan after 67 days. It has since sold 24,266,753 tickets for 35,064,331,400 yen (about US$242 million) in Japan after 73 days.
The film is the highest-earning anime film of all time worldwide, as well as the highest-earning Japanese film of all time worldwide. It is the first anime film to top the U.S. for two consecutive weekends. It is the highest-grossing anime film in the country (unadjusted for inflation) and also the first to earn over US$100 million there.
The film earned US$70,611,098 in its opening weekend. Besides breaking the record for the biggest opening weekend for an anime film in the U.S. — unadjusted for inflation, it also broke the same record even when adjusted for inflation by two different measures. The 1999 anime film Pokémon: The First Movie (Pocket Monsters: Mewtwo Strikes Back) previously held the biggest opening weekend record at US$31 million.
The first Infinity Castle film is the second highest-earning film of all time at the Japanese box office, surpassing Hayao Miyazaki and Studio Ghibli's 2001 film Spirited Away, which earned 31.68 billion yen (about US$315 million in 2001's yen-dollar conversion).
Demon Slayer – Kimetsu no Yaiba – The Movie: Mugen Train, the October 2020 film from the same franchise, is currently the highest-earning film in Japan, with a 40.75 billion yen (about US$277 million in current conversion) total take in Japan. The film itself surpassed Spirited Away (then the #1 highest-earning film in Japan) in December 2020, two months after it opened in Japan.
Haruo Sotozaki directed first Infinity Castle film at ufotable, and ufotable is also credited for the screenplay. Aimer performed the song "Taiyō ga Noboranai Sekai" ("A World Where the Sun Never Rises"), and LiSA performed the song "Zankoku no Yoru ni Kagayake" ("Shine in the Cruel Night").
Sources: The Numbers, (link 2), Box Office Mojo, Deadline (Nancy Tartaglione), The Hollywood Reporter (Pamela Mcclintock)
