The Japanese blockbuster was among a slew of new wide releases, including 'Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale,' while holdover 'The Conjuring: The Last Rites' hits a near-franchise-best $333 million globally.
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Box Office: Anime ‘Demon Slayer Infinity Castle’ Nabs Record $70M U.S. Opening
The film is among a slew of new wide releases gracing the marquee this weekend, including 'Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale,' while 'The Conjuring: The Last Rites' Hits $333 million globally.
Talk about an unexpected September bloom at the
box office that continued this weekend with a cornucopia of new offerings, led by the record-smashing U.S. debut of the Japanese
anime sequel
Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba – the Movie Infinity Castle. The Sony-owned Crunchyroll is handling the movie.
The pic came in well ahead of expectations with an estimated $70 million, including a huge Friday haul of $33 million, to score the top opening ever for an anime title at the North American box office. It’s also Sony’s best showing in recent times. Overseas, it earned another $30 million or so for a global tally approaching $400 million (it rolled out in Japan in July, followed by other select markets).
It’s the second strong weekend in a row for moviegoing after a miserable August, save for a special singalong screening toward the end of the month of
KPop: Demon Hunters, the most-watched English-language film in the history of Netflix.
Tracking had suggested the
Demon Slayer would open to $35 million to $40 million; others thought $50 million was far more likely. But it com in even higher as the appetite for the genre grows in theh U.S., and after being embraced by critics and audiences alike.
Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Infinity Castle is the first feature film in the three-part cinematic trilogy representing the final battle of the hugely popular, award-winning anime shonen series from famed animation studio Ufotable. The film has likewise done record-smashing business in Japan, where it debuted in July.
Directed by Haruo Sotozaki,
Infinity Castle adapts the final arc of Koyoharu Gotouge’s best-selling manga series. Voice cast regulars Natsuki Hanae (Tanjiro), Akari Kitō (Nezuko), Hiro Shimono (Zenitsu) and Yoshitsugu Matsuoka (Inosuke) return as the Demon Slayer Corps embarks on a climactic assault against the demon king Muzan Kibutsuji. The film was co-financed by Aniplex, a subsidiary of Sony Group.
International distribution comes from Toho, Aniplex and Crunchyroll, with Imax releases planned in over 40 territories worldwide.
The film also posted historic results for Imax in Japan; ditto for Imax screens in North America.
Warner Bros. and New Line’s juggernaut
The Conjuring: Last Rites — which finished Sunday with a near-franchise best $333 million in global ticket sales — fell 69 percent domestically in North America for a domestic total of $131.1 million after competing with
Demon Slayer for younger moviegoers. Overseas, it raked in a huge $60.5 million as it cleared the $200 million mark at the foreign box office for a worldwide tally of $332.9 million in its first 13 days.
The final big screen adaptation of the beloved British show
Downton Abbey placed third with a domestic debut of $18.1 million, in line with expectations.
Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale is likewise benefiting from glowing reviews and audience. Overseas, the movie opened to $12.3 million from its first 31 markets, led by the U.K., for a worldwide start of $30.4 million.
Lionsgate’s dystopian
The Long Walk, based on a Stephen King novel, opened in fourth place with an estimated $11.5 million. The pic earned a B+ CinemaScore, not unusual for the genre.
Demon Slayer and
Grand Finale each received an A.
In celebrating the 30th anniversary of Pixar’s seminal animated film
Toy Story, Disney is rereleasing the movie this weekend to strong numbers. The pic rounded out the top five with a pleasing $3.5 million domestically for a global total of $5.2 million. And in its second weekend, the rerelease of the filmed adaptation of Lin-Manuel Miranda’s
Hamilton took in another $2.2 million for total new earnings of $15 million. Disney also did well by a special 60th anniversary rerelease of
The Sound of Music, which earned $1.5 million in North America.
Rob Reiner’s sequel
Spinal Tap II: The End Continues started off with an estimated place with $1.7 million to come land at the bottom of the top 10 chart. The sequel to Reiner’s cult-classic mockumentary earned an A- CinemaScore.
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