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Live-Action Sakamoto Days Film Opens at #4, The Super Mario Galaxy Movie Stays at #1

The Super Mario Galaxy Movie — Nintendo, Illumination, and Universal Pictures' sequel to The Super Mario Bros. Movie — stayed at #1 in its second weekend on May 1-3. The film sold 847,000 tickets and earned 1.172 billion yen (about US$7.49 million) from Friday to Sunday. Over the Golden Week holidays until Wednesday, the film has now sold a total of 3.94 million tickets and earned a cumulative total of 5.4 billion yen (about US$34.51 million)

The film opened at #1 at the Japanese box office. The film sold 1.121 million tickets and earned 1,601,093,600 yen (about US$9.96 million) in its first three days.

The film opened in the United States and the United Kingdom on April 1, in other select territories on April 3, and in Japan on April 24.

Illumination founder and CEO Chris Meledandri and Nintendo representative director and fellow Shigeru Miyamoto again produced Illumination and Universal Pictures' new film. Directors Aaron Horvath and Michael Jelenic and screenwriter Matthew Fogel returned from the previous film for the new project. Brian Tyler returned to compose the soundtrack.

Detective Conan: Highway no Datenshi (Detective Conan: Fallen Angel of the Highway), the Detective Conan franchise's 29th film, dropped from #2 to #3 in its fourth weekend. The film sold 649,000 tickets and earned 932 million yen (about US$5.95 million) from Friday to Sunday. Over the Golden Week holidays until Wednesday, the film has now sold a total of 7.4 million tickets and has earned a cumulative total of 10.8 billion yen (about US$69.03 million). The film is now the fourth consecutive film in the franchise to earn more than 10 billion yen, beginning with 2023's Detective Conan: Black Iron Submarine film.

The film sold 2,318,009 tickets and earned 3,502,137,800 yen (about US$21.9 million) in its first three days, making a new opening-weekend record for the franchise, and debuting at #1 at the Japanese box office.

The new film centers on the character Chihaya Hagiwara, member of the Kanagawa Prefectural Police and the leader of its motorcycle division. Miyuki Sawashiro now voices the character, replacing the late Atsuko Tanaka. The movie also features Kanagawa inspector Jugo Yokomizo, teenage detective Masumi Sera, Chihaya's late younger brother Kenji Hagiwara, and Kenji's Police Academy classmate Jinpei Matsuda.

Takahiro Hasui (Detective Conan: The Black Iron Submarine) directed the film, and Takahiro Ōkura (Detective Conan: The Crimson Love Letter) wrote the script. Yūgo Kanno (Detective Conan: One-eyed Flashback) composed the music for the film. Misia performs the theme song "Last Danced Anata to" (Last Dance With You).

The live-action film of Yuuto Suzuki's Sakamoto Days manga ranked at #4 in its opening weekend. The film sold 346,000 tickets and earned 478 million yen (about US$3.05 million) in its first three days. In its first eight days in the Japanese box office, which spanned the entirety of the Golden Week holidays, the film sold 1.14 million tickets and earned 1.5 billion yen (about US$9.58 million).

The film opened in Japan on April 29. The film is also screening in the panoramic ScreenX format in 27 theaters all over Japan.

Viz Media and MANGA Plus are publishing the manga in English digitally. Viz is also publishing the manga in print. MANGA Plus describes the story:

Taro Sakamoto was the ultimate assassin, feared by villains and admired by hitmen. But one day...he fell in love! Retirement, marriage, fatherhood and then... Sakamoto gained weight! the chubby guy who runs the neighborhood store is actually a former legendary hitman! Can he protect his family from danger? Get ready to experience a new kind of action comedy series! 

Snow Man member Ren Meguro stars as Tarō Sakamoto, and Fumiya Takahashi plays Shin Asakura. Aya Ueto plays Tarō Sakamoto's wife Aoi Sakamoto, while Miyu Yoshimoto plays Tarō Sakamoto's daughter Hana Sakamoto. Other cast members include Mayū Yokota as Lu Shaotang, Junki Tozuka as Heisuke Mashimo, Akihisa Shiono as Kashima, and Keisuke Watanabe as Natsuki Seiba. Takumi Kitamura, Yūsei Yagi, and Meru Nukumi play Order assassins Nagumo, Shishiba, and Osaragi, respectively.

Yūichi Fukuda (live-action Gintama, Under Ninja) directed and wrote the script for the film. Keiya Tabuchi (Evangelion: 3.0+1.0: Thrice Upon A Time, live-action Attack on Titan, Kamen Rider Amazons) directed the action. CREDEUS is producing the film with Avex Pictures.

Shingo Yamashita's Cosmic Princess Kaguya! (Chō Kaguya-hime!) anime film dropped from #5 to #6 in its 11th weekend after the film's limited one-week theatrical screening run in Japan was extended.

The film's limited theatrical run started on February 20. Tickets quickly sold out, with some theaters having to increase the number of screenings to more than 10 times a day. The film earned a total of 223,485,400 yen (about US$1.43 million) in Japanese theaters in its first three days after its run was extended.

Netflix began streaming the film on January 22.

Yamashita (Pokémon: Twilight Wings, opening animation for Jujutsu Kaisen, Chainsaw Man, 2022 Urusei Yatsura) made his feature-length directorial debut with the film in a collaboration between his Studio Chromato and Studio Colorido. Hechima (The Idolmaster Gakuen) and Akihiro Nagae (Drifting Home) designed the characters, with the former in charge of the Tsukuyomi designs and the latter handling the real-world character designs.

The film features songs by Vocaloid producers Ryo (supercell), kz (Livetune), 40mP, HoneyWorks, Aqu3ra, and yuigot.

Sound! Euphonium, The Final Movie Part 1 (Saishū Gakushō Hibike! Euphonium Zenpen) dropped from #4 to #8 in its second weekend.

The film opened on May 1 in 201 theaters across Japan at #4. The film sold 77,000 tickets and earned 125,819,900 yen (about US$783,000) in its first three days.

 The film includes a newly animated performance scene from the "Sunrise Festival," the annual in-story marching band event. Additionally, the film features a new scene of Kumiko Oumae as she "takes on the great responsibility of becoming club president."

TRUE performs the theme song "ToCoda." TRUE has performed theme songs for the three previous seasons of the anime as well as Sound! Euphonium The Movie - Our Promise: A Brand New Day and Sound! Euphonium: Ensemble Contest Arc.

Taichi Ogawa is directing the anime, and Tatsuya Ishihara is the chief director. Jukki Hanada is in charge of the script and series composition. Character designers include Shoko Ikeda and Kazumi Ikeda, and Kazumi Ikeda is also the chief animation director. Akito Matsuda is composing the music at Lantis and Heart Company, with music cooperation by Senzoku Gakuen College of Music.

The film opened on February 27 and ranked at #1 in its first weekend. The film sold 621,000 tickets and earned 779,681,350 yen (about US$4.96 million) in its first three days. The film ranked at #1 for six straight weekends.

The 45th 2D anime film (not counting the 3D CG Stand By Me Doraemon films) remakes the classic 1983 film Doraemon the Movie: Nobita and the Castle of the Undersea Devil.

Tetsuo Yajima (Pokémon the Movie: Secrets of the Jungle, Pokémon the Movie: The Power of Us, Pokémon XY) returns after directing episodes of the Doraemon television anime and contributing in other capacities to Doraemon the Movie: Nobita's New Great Adventure into the Underworld, Doraemon the Movie: Nobita and the Steel Troops: The New Age, and Eiga Doraemon: Nobita no Chikyū Symphony. Another veteran of the television anime, Isao Murayama (Witchy Precure!, Star Twinkle Precure, Bakugan), wrote the new film's screenplay.

Sources: Kōgyō Tsūshin (link 2), Cinema Today