The Reze Arc Movie Leads the U.S. Box Office in First Weekend
Can Sony claim to have done it again? In the wake of the success of the blockbuster Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle, which grossed over $600 million worldwide, the latest Chainsaw Man film has reached beyond the $100 million mark internationally, reaching a global total of over $108 million in its opening frame. This feature beat out Black Phone 2 (almost $13 million) in its second week in cinemas, as well as the music documentary Springsteen: Deliver Me From Nowhere featuring Jeremy Allen White ($9 million).
Impressive U.S. and International Earnings
Helmed by director Tatsuya Yoshihara, the movie is a straightforward follow-up of Chainsaw Man’s first season. It earned over $18 million domestically after a robust $5.2M Saturday earnings and four-point-five-million-dollar Sunday performance. Globally, the produced by MAPPA film earned $14.7M across 46 international territories, resulting in a global sum of over $60 million under Sony ($43.1 million international, $18.2 million stateside). Official totals are still pending from Sony its official box office total.
Parallels to Other Anime Hits
Anime marketing agency an industry expert noted in prior discussions, contrasting the movie's expected results to the popular film Jujutsu Kaisen 0, which grossed thirty-four million dollars in the U.S. and Canada in the year 2022 and opened to a similar eighteen million dollars in the U.S.. The new film's debut weekend matches that standard, while its $108M global gross currently tracks slightly below the earlier film's over $166 million overall box office. Even if it doesn't seem possible the Reze Arc movie will achieve the earnings seen by blockbuster Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle, it remains a huge win for Sony.
Promotional Efforts Fuel Success
The studio and its partner Crunchyroll have effectively leveraged community involvement to drive their leadership at the anime box office. The movie's promotional efforts kicked off at the Los Angeles Anime Expo in July with a MAPPA panel, exclusive activations, and Pochita photo ops, then continued with a notable appearance at NYCC featuring exclusive clips, fan raffles, and further MAPPA discussions. Additionally, there was an private showing for enthusiasts for general audiences and popular figures too after the final day of the convention.
Looking Ahead
2025 is a significant period for Japanese animation, and for Sony, which has an additional anime film debuting in the coming months in the upcoming Jujutsu Kaisen: Execution in late this year.
