Some of you may be wondering why Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them is being included as a 2017 release on the Top Grossing Films of 2017 list when it was released in November last year.

EIREN (Motion Picture Association of Japan) dictates that if a film released before December that grosses over ¥1 billion OR earns more than 50% of their earnings AFTER the beginning of December, it is then considered a release in the upcoming year. So, it ended up landing on the 2017 charts.

And speaking of which, I WILL have 2016's Yearly Data posted TOMORROW. No more delays. To remind everyone; 2016 was the biggest year of all-time in revenue and the most-attended year since 1974, also making it as the fifth-consecutive year that yearly admissions have increased in the market.

All-Time Best Multipliers (¥1 billion Earners; Wide Debuts) [1998-]
01. 33.34 - Frozen (Mar., 2014)
02. 30.37 - Spirited Away (July, 2001)
03. 26.99 - Princess Mononoke (July, 1997)
04. 26.13 - Avatar (Dec., 2009)
05. 25.62 - Your Name. (Aug., 2016) [After 23 Weeks]
06. 23.21 - Departures (Sept., 2008)
07. 19.96 - Les Miserabes (Dec., 2012)
08. 17.07 - Zootopia (Apr., 2016)
09. 16.44 - The Cat Returns (July, 2002)
10. 16.15 - The Eternal Zero (Dec., 2013)
11. 15.69 - Monsters, Inc. (Mar., 2002)
12. 15.29 - Big Hero 6 (Dec., 2014)
13. 15.25 - The Last Samurai (Dec., 2003)
14. 14.98 - Ponyo (July, 2008)
15. 14.84 - Howl's Moving Castle (Nov., 2004)
16. 14.81 - Always: Sunset on Third Street (Nov., 2005)
17. 14.25 - Confessions (June, 2010)
18. 13.96 - Bayside Shakedown: Save the Rainbow Bridge! (July, 2003)
19. 13.83 - Thermae Romae (Apr., 2012)
20. 13.64 - Crying Out Love in the Center of the World (May, 2004)
21. 13.20 - Shin Godzilla (July, 2016)
22. 13.09 - Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (Dec., 2001)
23. 12.98 - Summer Wars (Aug., 2009)
24. 12.88 - Ted (Jan., 2013)
25. 12.51 - The Wind Rises (July, 2013)
26. 12.50 - The Phantom of the Opera (Jan., 2005)
27. 12.48 - Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (Aug., 2003)
28. 12.24 - Finding Nemo (Dec., 2003)
29. 12.16 - Wolf Children (July, 2012)

Three 2016 releases achieved a multiplier over 12 in 2016 (Your Name. [still in release], Zootopia, and Shin Godzilla. I'll have the full list of 2016 multipliers later this week, following tomorrow's 2016 Yearly Data posts.

Also, In This Corner of the World has exceeded a multiplier of 37 after 12 weeks. If I were to include it, it'd be a clear #1; however, it debuted in limited release (46 screens) and remained a limited release for several weeks before eventually expanding to nearly 200 screens, so I'm excluding because of that. I'll keep track of it, though, because it's having an extraordinary performance.

Corpse, what was Titanic's multiplier? Thanks!

Unfortunately, I don't know Titanic's opening weekend... I have weekend data all the way back to 1998 (which is where I begin the majority of such charts), but only for a select number of films before then. And I've done a number of searches in the past to try and find it, but no luck.

We've had a lot of new members join and participate in this thread over the past 6 months or so, so maybe we can work together to find it!

And welcome to WOKJ! How did you find us? Long-time lurker, ANN, BOT, Japan Times?

Thanks for the welcome! I was introduced to this site via BOT. The discussion of Japan's box office over there isn't very active other than copying your numbers, so I decided to move here for more meaningful analysis. Speaking of which, do you have any predictions for biggest films of February and March? Any potential break-outs?

Double Post

Such a shame YN. missed out on the Oscar nomination/potential win and any financial boon to be had by the same.

Oh well, at least we've avoided the frustration of having to see its run prematurely cut short à la Frozen.

Alright, the 2016 Yearly Data post will be up today in an hour or so, as promised.

2016 Yearly Results:

Yearly Revenue: ¥235.508 billion ($2.23 billion), +8.5% , New Record; Biggest Year Ever!
Yearly Admissions: 180,189,000, +8.1%, Most Attended Year Since 1974!

Japanese Film Share - 63.1%: ¥148.608 billion ($1.41 billion), +23.4%, New Record; Biggest Year Ever!
Imported Film Share - 36.9%: ¥86.900 billion ($823 million), -10.2%, 5th Weakest Year Since 2000.

# Of Japanese Films Released: 610, +4.9%, 2nd Most Japanese Films Released Ever (Behind 2014)
# Of Imported Films Released: 539, -2.9%, 3rd Most Imported Films Released Ever (Behind 2014, 2015)
# Of Overall Films Released: 1,149, +1.1%, 2nd Most Films Released Ever (Behind 2014)

Number of Screens: 3,472, +0.1%, Most Screens Since 1969!
Average Ticket Price: ¥1,307 ($12.33), +0.3%, New Record!

*2016 is the fifth-consecutive year that Yearly Admissions have increased in Japan.
*2016 marks the ninth-consecutive year that Japanese Films earned more than Imported Films.

2016: Highest Grossing Films (¥1 billion Earners)

01. ¥23.83 billion ($226.1 million) / 18.35 million - Your Name. (Toho) [Still In Release] #4 All-Time
02. ¥11.63 billion ($96.3 million) / 7.48 million - Star Wars: The Force Awakens (Disney) #20 All-Time
03. ¥8.25 billion ($79.2 million) / 5.69 million - Shin Godzilla (Toho) #56 All-Time
04. ¥7.63 billion ($70.6 million) / 5.91 million - Zootopia (Disney) #69 All-Time
05. ¥6.83 billion ($65.8 million) / 5.57 million - Finding Dory (Disney) #86 All-Time
06. ¥6.33 billion ($58.1 million) / 4.94 million - Detective Conan: The Darkest Nightmare (Toho) #98 All-Time
07. ¥5.53 billion ($46.5 million) / 5.01 million - Yo-Kai Watch: Great King Enma and the 5 Stories, Nyan! (Toho)
08. ¥5.18 billion ($50.3 million) / 3.91 million - One Piece Film Gold (Toei)
09. ¥4.61 billion ($39.6 million) / 3.60 million - Nobunaga Concerto (Toho)
10. ¥4.24 billion ($41.1 million) / 3.44 million - The Secret Life of Pets (Toho-Towa)
11. ¥4.12 billion ($36.7 million) / 3.63 million - Doraemon: Nobita and the Birth of Japan (Toho)
12. ¥3.54 billion ($31.1 million) / 2.44 million - The Martian (Fox)
13. ¥3.52 billion ($31.5 million) / 3.12 million - Assassination Classroom: Graduation (Toho)
14. ¥3.25 billion ($27.0 million) / 2.74 million - Orange (Toho)
15. ¥2.96 billion ($24.5 million) / 2.25 million - Spectre (Sony)
16. ¥2.78 billion ($26.3 million) / 1.88 million - Alice Through the Looking Glass (Disney)
17. ¥2.66 billion ($25.2 million) / 1.83 million - Independence Day: Resurgence (Fox)
18. ¥2.63 billion ($24.1 million) / 1.73 million - Captain America: Civil War (Disney)
19. ¥2.30 billion ($21.7 million) / 1.75 million - A Silent Voice (Shochiku)
20. ¥2.21 billion ($21.5 million) / 1.64 million - The Jungle Book (Disney)
21. ¥2.20 billion ($21.1 million) / 1.74 million - Evergreen Love (Shochiku)
21. ¥2.20 billion ($19.8 million) / 1.70 million - Death Note: Light Up the New World (Warner Bros.)
23. ¥2.15 billion ($20.8 million) / 1.95 million - Pokemon XY&Z: Volcanion and the Mechanical Magearna (Toho)
24. ¥2.11 billion ($19.6 million) / 1.82 million - Crayon Shin-chan: Great Assault on the Dreaming World (Toho)
24. ¥2.11 billion ($19.9 million) / 1.60 million - High & Low: The Movie (Shochiku)
26. ¥2.04 billion ($19.2 million) / 1.40 million - Deadpool (Fox)
27. ¥1.98 billion ($16.7 million) / 1.65 million - Living With My Mother (Shochiku)
28. ¥1.94 billion ($18.0 million) / 1.57 million - 64: Part 1 (Toho)
29. ¥1.86 billion ($16.9 million) / 1.21 million - Batman vs Superman: Dawn of Justice (Warner Bros.)
30. ¥1.76 billion ($17.0 million) / 1.18 million - Suicide Squad (Warner Bros.)
31. ¥1.74 billion ($16.2 million) / 1.43 million - 64: Part 2 (Toho)
31. ¥1.74 billion ($14.9 million) / 1.35 million - In This Corner of the World (Tokyo Theaters, Co.) [Still In Release]
33. ¥1.70 billion ($15.0 million) / 1.35 million - The Good Dinosaur (Disney)
34. ¥1.63 billion ($14.8 million) / 1.37 million - Chihayafuru - Part 1 (Toho)
35. ¥1.62 billion ($14.8 million) / 1.20 million - I Am a Hero (Toho)
36. ¥1.61 billion ($13.5 million) / 1.28 million - Saraba Abunai Deka: Long Goodbye (Toei)
36. ¥1.61 billion ($15.2 million) / 1.24 million - Rage (Toho)
38. ¥1.54 billion ($14.3 million) / 1.17 million - Inferno (Sony)
39. ¥1.52 billion ($14.4 million) / 1.31 million - Black Widow Business (Toho)
40. ¥1.51 billion ($14.1 million) / 1.14 million - Too Young to Die! (Toho/Asmik Ace)
40. ¥1.51 billion ($14.4 million) / 1.10 million - Jason Bourne (Toho-Towa)
42. ¥1.50 billion ($13.7 million) / 1.18 million - Museum (Warner Bros.)
43. ¥1.46 billion ($14.0 million) / 1.22 million - Rudolph to Ippaiattena (Toho)
44. ¥1.42 billion ($13.4 million) / 1.18 million - Your Lie in April (Toho)
45. ¥1.40 billion ($12.8 million) / 1.14 million - The Town Where Only I Am Missing (Warner Bros.)
46. ¥1.38 billion ($12.2 million) / 1.22 million - What a Wonderful Family (Shochiku)
47. ¥1.37 billion ($12.5 million) / 1.15 million - The Magnificent Nine (Shochiku)
48. ¥1.35 billion ($12.8 million) / 1.10 million - Sully (Warner Bros.)
49. ¥1.26 billion ($11.0 million) / 1.04 million - The Summit of the Gods (Toho)
50. ¥1.25 billion ($11.9 million) / 1.07 million - Yell for the Blue Sky (Toho)
51. ¥1.24 billion ($11.8 million) / 0.87 million - Ghostbusters (Sony)
52. ¥1.23 billion ($10.8 million) / 1.03 million - The Black Devil and the White Prince (Showgate)
52. ¥1.23 billion ($11.1 million) / 0.95 million - If Cats Disappeared From the World (Toho)
54. ¥1.22 billion ($11.2 million) / 1.02 million - Chihayafuru - Part 2 (Toho)
55. ¥1.21 billion ($11.2 million) / 1.00 million - Wolf Girl and Black Prince (Warner Bros.)
55. ¥1.21 billion ($10.1 million) / 1.01 million - Persona Non Grata (Toho)
57. ¥1.18 billion ($11.2 million) / 0.92 million - High & Low: The Red Rain (Shochiku)
58. ¥1.16 billion ($10.8 million) / 0.98 million - Samurai Hustle Returns! (Shochiku)
59. ¥1.08 billion ($9.5 million) / 0.80 million - The Revenant (Fox)
60. ¥1.07 billion ($9.5 million) / 0.86 million - Somebody (Toho)
61. ¥1.00 billion ($9.7 million) / 0.86 million - Yu-Gi-Oh: The Dark Side of Dimensions (Toei)
61. ¥1.00 billion ($9.5 million) / 0.78 million - Kadoko vs. Sayako (Kadokawa)

Number of ¥1 Billion Earners Per Year [2000-]
Year - # of ¥1 Billion Films (Japanese/Imported)
2016 - 62 (43/19)
2005 - 62 (25/37)
2015 - 60 (38/22)
2012 - 59 (39/20)
2009 - 57 (34/23)
2013 - 56 (35/21)
2011 - 54 (32/22)
2008 - 52 (28/26)
2007 - 51 (29/22)
2004 - 51 (20/31)
2006 - 50 (28/22)
2014 - 49 (31/18)
2010 - 48 (29/19)
2000 - 48 (18/30)
2003 - 48 (18/30)
2002 - 47 (17/30)
2001 - 45 (15/30)
_____________
2000-2015 - 899 (479/420)

I'll provide a February/March Release Schedule late this week.

Corpse,
Your last post listing the highest grossing films of 2016 writes in Shin Godzilla with an attendance of 5.69. In previous posts listing all-time attendance it's listed at 5.59. For clarification I'm just wondering which it is or if there was a typo.

How's buzz for SAO: OS and La La Land? Also, it'll be interesting to see how XXX: CC performs in asian market with such diverse cast.

I was thinking about the rate, but both would be interesting to know.

Thank you guys!
I have another update from Italy: the three day event for Your Name here has been quite a success, so the distributor added new screenings on January 31 and February 1st: yesterday the movie added 53.971 € to the 548.909 € of last week (no data are available for January 31, unfortunately).

It's 5.69 million. The last update before the final total was released was 5.59 million.



I'm sure SAO will do quite well, especially if there are any giveaways to early attendees. It's definitely a fan-driven film, so the somewhat low screen count shouldn't hider it either. I'm not sure what to predict at this moment, as it could be frontloaded.

La La Land getting so much award recognition will certainly give it much needed awareness (original material, fairly unknown cast, etc., is hard to overcome in Japan). It'll be released after the Oscars, so if it scores the most wins and takes home the biggies as expected, I don't see any reason why it won't do well in Japan (maybe ~$20 million or so?).

Thanks for the continuous updates.

(C)2016 Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation

Weekend Forecast (02/04-05)
01 (01) ¥244,000,000 ($2.2 million), -38%, ¥1,100,000,000 ($9.7 million), Doctor Strange (Disney) WK2
02 (---) ¥225,000,000 ($2.0 million), 0, ¥275,000,000 ($2.4 million), Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children (Fox) NEW
03 (02) ¥128,000,000 ($1.1 million), -45%, ¥525,000,000 ($4.6 million), Kiseki: Sobito of That Day (Toei) WK2
04 (03) ¥99,000,000 ($880,000), -20%, ¥24,025,000,000 ($227.8 million), Your Name. (Toho) WK24
05 (---) ¥75,000,000 ($665,000), 0, ¥75,000,000 ($665,000), The 100th Love With You (Asmik Ace) NEW
06 (05) ¥66,000,000 ($585,000), -37%, ¥275,000,000 ($2.4 million), A Loving Husband (Toho) WK2
07 (06) ¥64,000,000 ($570,000), -38%, ¥575,000,000 ($5.1 million), Shinjuku Swan 2 (Sony) WK3
08 (04) ¥62,000,000 ($550,000), -42%, ¥275,000,000 ($2.4 million), Hamon: Yakuza Boogie (Shochiku) WK2
09 (09) ¥61,000,000 ($540,000), -10%, ¥1,850,000,000 ($15.8 million), In This Corner of the World (Tokyo Theaters, Co.) W13
10 (08) ¥55,000,000 ($490,000), -35%, ¥525,000,000 ($4.7 million), Silence (Kadokawa) WK3

>Doctor Strange will be defending the top spot this weekend against Tim Burton's latest, and based on pre-sales and morning/afternoon ticket sales, it's probably going to remain in first place for a second weekend though it'll be a fairly close result either way.

>Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children finally releases in Japan nearly half-a-year after its initial release worldwide last year, and is looking to post a respectable debut. Tim Burton has a dedicated fanbase in Japan, and the market is frequently one of the best for his films.

The film's earnings from Japan will be particularly noteworthy, too, since its debut weekend will push it above the $200 million mark at the foreign box office. Also, it's fallen about $14 million shy of reaching the $300 million mark at the worldwide box office, but Japan can probably get it over that milestone (barely), too.

>Your Name. will be enjoying its 24th weekend of release very much still in the Top 5 as it nears half-a-year in release, though it might fall below a ¥100 million weekend (still a record 24th weekend) for the first time since opening last August. After this weekend it'll need 3 more weeks in the Top 5, and 3 more consecutive weeks in the Top 10, to break Spirited Away's records in both categories.

>Below the Top 4 this weekend is going to be very close with as many as 5-7 films likely landing somewhere around ¥60/70 million. I wouldn't be surprised if films #s 5-10 end up separated by just 10/15% this weekend.

Corpse, Were you able to finish some new estimates?

About the admissions of the 50s, 60s and Japanese films between 1950 and 1953.

How far can Dr. Strange go?