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Chainsaw Man Anime Film Stays at #1, Live-Action 5 cm/s Film Stays at #2
posted on by Adriana Hazra
Chainsaw Man – The Movie: Reze Arc, the film based on the Reze Arc of Tatsuki Fujimoto's Chainsaw Man manga, stayed at #1 in its fifth weekend at the Japanese box office from October 17-19. The film sold 375,000 tickets and earned 581,975,100 yen (about US$3.81 million) from Friday to Sunday. The film has sold a total of 4.26 million tickets and earned a cumulative total of 6,514,023,700 yen (about US$42.7 million).
The film opened at #1 replacing the Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Infinity Castle - Akaza Sairai film, which had topped the box office for nine straight weeks. The film sold 807,000 tickets for 1,251,178,500 yen (about US$8.46 million) in its opening weekend.
Sony Pictures Entertainment (SPE) has acquired worldwide theatrical rights the film. The company will open the film in theaters in the United States on October 24, with early screenings for Crunchyroll members on October 22. The film will open in the United Kingdom on October 29, and it began screening earlier in more than 80 countries on September 24.
Reina Ueda plays Reze in the film.
The live-action film of Makoto Shinkai's 5 Centimeters per Second anime film stayed at #2 in its second weekend. The film sold 198,000 tickets and earned 283,036,400 yen (about US$1.85 million) from Friday to Sunday, and has so far sold 710,000 tickets and earned 1,006,136,700 yen (about US$6.59 million).
The film opened in Japan on October 10.
SixTONES member Hokuto Matsumura (Suzume's Sōta Munakata) stars in the live-action film.
Spoon is producing the film, and TOHO is distributing. Yoshiyuki Okuyama directed the film, and Ayako Suzuki wrote the script. Ayatake Ezaki composed the music. Kenshi Yonezu performs the theme song "1991."
The 5 Centimeters per Second anime opened in Japan in 2007. The film is split into three individual segments. Shinkai directed, wrote, and storyboarded the anime film, and was also the sound director, producer, and art director. Tenmon composed the music.
The film had sold a total of 23,042,671 tickets for 33,056,606,000 yen (about US$224 million) as of September 15, its 60th day in the Japanese box office. This made it 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 31,680,000,000 (about US$315 million in 2001's yen-dollar conversion) to become the #2 highest-earning film of all time in Japan.
The film had earned an estimated total of US$555 million worldwide as of September 21. The film is now the highest-earning anime film of all time worldwide, as well as the highest-earning Japanese film of all time worldwide.
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 is directing the anime at ufotable, and ufotable is also credited for the screenplay. Aimer is performing the song "Taiyō ga Noboranai Sekai" ("A World Where the Sun Never Rises"), and LiSA is performing the song "Zankoku no Yoru ni Kagayake" ("Shine in the Cruel Night").
The live-action film of KOTAKE CREATE's infinite-loop horror game The Exit 8 (8-Ban Deguchi) dropped from #7 to #8 in its eighth weekend. The film earned 68,881,500 yen (about US$451,400) from Friday to Sunday, and has earned a cumulative total of 4,899,067,900 yen (about US$32.10 million).
The film opened in Japan on August 29, and ranked at #2 in its opening weekend. The film sold 672,000 tickets and earned 960,867,600 yen (about US$6.46 million) in its first three days. The film now has the highest earning opening three days for a live-action film in Japan for 2025.
North American film distribution company NEON (Oscar-winning films Parasite, Anora U.S. distributor) will release the film in North America in early 2026.
Singer and actor Kazunari Ninomiya (live-action Letters from Iwo Jima, Ōoku, Gantz, Assassination Classroom) stars in the film in his first collaboration with writer-director Genki Kawamura (producer on your name., Fireworks, Should We See it from the Side or the Bottom?, Suzume).
The Aikatsu! x PriPara THE MOVIE -Deai no Kiseki!- (Aikatsu! x PriPara THE MOVIE -The Miracle of Encounters!-) anime film, the 10th anniversary "dream project" collaboration between the Aikatsu! and PriPara idol franchises, dropped from #6 to #9 in its second weekend. The film earned 69,707,122 yen (about US$456,800) from Friday to Sunday, and has earned a total of 250,466,004 yen (about US$1.64 million).
The film opened on October 10. The project is a collaboration between the Akari generation of Aikatsu! and the PriPara franchise, which both launched in 2014, and have thus already marked their 10th anniversary.
Takahiro Ōkawa (Aikatsu on Parade!, Aikatsu Friends! ~Kagayaki no Jewel~ episode director) directed the film at BN Pictures. Michihiro Tsuchiya (Cinderella Boy, Kaleido Star) wrote the scenario, and Hiroko Yaguchi and Shōji Hara (four seasons of Aikatsu!) (Idol Time PriPara, Idolland PriPara) designed the characters. Bandai Namco Pictures and Avex Pictures are distributing the film.
Chinmoku no Kantai Hokkyoku-kai dai kaisen (The Silent Service: The Battle of the Arctic Ocean), the sequel film for the live-action project of Kaiji Kawaguchi's The Silent Service manga, dropped from #8 to #10 in its fourth weekend.
The film opened on September 26. It sold 195,000 tickets and earned 282,233,100 yen (about US$1.90 million) in its first three days.
Kōhei Yoshino directed the film, with a script by Hikaru Takai. Yoshihiro Ike composes the music. Ado performs the theme song "Kaze to Watashi no Monogatari" (The Tale of The Wind and I).
The first film opened in Japan in September 2023, and sold 274,000 tickets for 370,136,800 yen (about US$2.46 million) in its first three days.
In the story, Shiro Kaieda is appointed the captain of Japan's first nuclear submarine, jointly built by Japan and the United States in top secret. However, he and his 76 crew members go rogue in this story that delves into themes of nuclear war, international politics, and world peace.
The first part of the Golden Kamuy: Sapporo Beer Kōjō-hen (Golden Kamuy: Sapporo Beer Factory Arc) prologue film to the Golden Kamuy anime's final arc left the top 10 in its second week.
Sources: Kōgyō Tsūshin (link 2), comScore via KOFIC
