After years of holding the record for being the biggest box office hit in Japan, Hayao Miyazaki’s 2001 animated feature, “Spirited Away” was finally dethroned by another animated film, “Demon Slayer the Movie: Mugen Train”.
The movie, which was released in Japan in October last year, had since made USD 362.6 million at the box office, after becoming the fastest movie in the history of the Japanese box office to cross USD 100 million, surpassing the aforementioned film – which had held the record for 19 years – by 15 days.
In addition, the movie also set a new record for the highest-grossing IMAX release in Japan, earning USD 21 million from the IMAX screenings, as of 27 December 2020.
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| “Parasite” was among the few foreign films that made it to Japan’s top ten last year |
Reportedly, the pandemic has also played the part in the animated feature’s success, as there was a lack of competition from Hollywood studios like Disney and Pixar; which would usually attract the family and teen demographics.
The film, directed by Haruo Sotozaki, is a direct sequel to the 2019 anime television series, which itself was an adaptation of “Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba” – the best-selling manga series by Koyoharu Gotouge that follows two siblings in Taishō-era Japan as they seek a cure to their sister’s demon curse.
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| The animated feature is based on the Jump Comics’ manga series by Koyoharu Gotouge |