Corpse, how is saturday and sunday shaping up?

Yes. Saturday is looking very strong. Sunday reservations go live later today.

Huge start in Hong Kong.

Saw it mentioned on 5ch earlier. Do you have the figure and comparisons to films this year, or if it's really huge, versus other big opening days?

2PM < 7PM < Final Admissions (Usual Locations):

Demon Slayer: Mugen Train (FOURTH Week):
Mon. - 71,455 < 126,132 < 148,335
Tues. - 30,751 < 60,299 < 100,663
Wed. - 58,220 < 118,548 < 141,701
Thur. - 36,615
Fri. -

Frozen II (First Week):
Mon. - 54,447 < 92,121 < 104,052
Tues. - 27,455 < 54,818 < 65,760
Wed. - 46,552 < 95,692 < 110,823
Thur. - 25,992 < 51,478 < 61,081
Fri. - 23,952 < 57,013 < 77,296

Weathering With You (First Week):
Mon. - 59,941 < 107,816 < 125,510
Tues. - 44,884 < 82,161 < 97,566
Wed. - 65,636 < 119,995 < 139,965
Thur. - 47,737 < 85,766 < 100,547
Fri. - 48,453 < 93,050 < 122,720

Aladdin (First Week):
Mon. - 44,268 < 90,472 < 109,847
Tues. - 24,934 < 58,999 < 76,025
Wed. - 44,968 < 99,900 < 124,887
Thur. - 22,834 < 54,159 < 70,555
Fri. - 27,992 < 68,615 < 103,910

Beauty and the Beast (First Week):
Mon. - 45,260 < 88,422 < 108,101
Tues. - 30,251 < 64,185 < 81,400
Wed. - 58,924 < 124,700 < 152,195
Thur. - 28,549 < 61,268 < 77,112
Fri. - 24,959 < 57,366 < 100,795

Unfortunately I don't have any solid source on Hong Kong dailies. There is this list, which is supposed to be admits, not sure if it is tho.
https://wmoov.com/movie/boxoffice

2PM < 7PM < Final Admissions (Usual Locations):

Demon Slayer: Mugen Train (FOURTH Week):
Mon. - 71,455 < 126,132 < 148,335
Tues. - 30,751 < 60,299 < 100,663
Wed. - 58,220 < 118,548 < 141,701
Thur. - 36,615 <74,357
Fri. -

Frozen II (First Week):
Mon. - 54,447 < 92,121 < 104,052
Tues. - 27,455 < 54,818 < 65,760
Wed. - 46,552 < 95,692 < 110,823
Thur. - 25,992 < 51,478 < 61,081
Fri. - 23,952 < 57,013 < 77,296

Weathering With You (First Week):
Mon. - 59,941 < 107,816 < 125,510
Tues. - 44,884 < 82,161 < 97,566
Wed. - 65,636 < 119,995 < 139,965
Thur. - 47,737 < 85,766 < 100,547
Fri. - 48,453 < 93,050 < 122,720

Aladdin (First Week):
Mon. - 44,268 < 90,472 < 109,847
Tues. - 24,934 < 58,999 < 76,025
Wed. - 44,968 < 99,900 < 124,887
Thur. - 22,834 < 54,159 < 70,555
Fri. - 27,992 < 68,615 < 103,910

Beauty and the Beast (First Week):
Mon. - 45,260 < 88,422 < 108,101
Tues. - 30,251 < 64,185 < 81,400
Wed. - 58,924 < 124,700 < 152,195
Thur. - 28,549 < 61,268 < 77,112
Fri. - 24,959 < 57,366 < 100,795

it will narrowly miss the 100k at usual locations today unfortunately

COVID-19 has reached its peak today in japan - 1646 cases. I hope it does not affect the box office.

It's not a new peak (positivity rate was actually below yesterday too), but wave 3 certainly seems to have arrived. August had a couple worse days. I have a post about it coming up soon.

2PM < 7PM < Final Admissions (Usual Locations):

Demon Slayer: Mugen Train (FOURTH Week):
Mon. - 71,455 < 126,132 < 148,335
Tues. - 30,751 < 60,299 < 100,663
Wed. - 58,220 < 118,548 < 141,701
Thur. - 36,615 <74,357 < 92,584
Fri. -

Frozen II (First Week):
Mon. - 54,447 < 92,121 < 104,052
Tues. - 27,455 < 54,818 < 65,760
Wed. - 46,552 < 95,692 < 110,823
Thur. - 25,992 < 51,478 < 61,081
Fri. - 23,952 < 57,013 < 77,296

Weathering With You (First Week):
Mon. - 59,941 < 107,816 < 125,510
Tues. - 44,884 < 82,161 < 97,566
Wed. - 65,636 < 119,995 < 139,965
Thur. - 47,737 < 85,766 < 100,547
Fri. - 48,453 < 93,050 < 122,720

Aladdin (First Week):
Mon. - 44,268 < 90,472 < 109,847
Tues. - 24,934 < 58,999 < 76,025
Wed. - 44,968 < 99,900 < 124,887
Thur. - 22,834 < 54,159 < 70,555
Fri. - 27,992 < 68,615 < 103,910

Beauty and the Beast (First Week):
Mon. - 45,260 < 88,422 < 108,101
Tues. - 30,251 < 64,185 < 81,400
Wed. - 58,924 < 124,700 < 152,195
Thur. - 28,549 < 61,268 < 77,112
Fri. - 24,959 < 57,366 < 100,795

Alight, so time for the COVID talk now that cases have reached the levels back in early August over the past week. Wall of text incoming:

One of the biggest reasons for the rise in cases getting back over 1,000 daily (except for last Friday and Saturday, I believe, which were under 1,000) and now up above 1,500, is because of the northern most prefecture of Hokkaido. If you recall, this was the first prefecture earlier this year to report cases and the hardest hit back then, too. This is the coldest prefecture, so it's not surprising that they'd be the first area to begin seeing an uptick in cases again. But in addition to the weather factor, most of their cases have been traced back to the nightclubs in the capitol (Sapporo) there, and most of the case are the younger 20-30 year olds. What's likely to happen here is the government imposing a curfew like before to deter younger people from going out to the clubs.

But Hokkaido isn't alone. In general, many prefectures, including Tokyo, has seen an uptick of 50-100 or so more cases over the past week than their normal averages from September and October. Testing has also increased, which naturally results in more cases, so this will help them determine when and where clusters are so they can be contained. Again, most tracing has linked back to nightclubs and some restaurants. Restrictions, such as curfews, were lifted on nightclubs and restaurants back in September, and while the government hasn't made any announcements yet, I wouldn't be surprised if curfews are reinstated again and possible capacity limits put back in place on them in the coming days/weeks.

The government isn't expected to announce any lockdowns, in fact they're rolling out a domestic tourism program right now (but it may be a bit more limited than planned), so I wouldn't worry yet unless cases really begin to explode. They have said though that they're not allowing large venues, like stadiums, to go back to 100% capacity at the end of the month like planned, and they'll instead will need to wait until at least February.

But what does this mean for the box office? That's what most are wondering here. Well, right now, nothing. Theaters reopened back in June and stayed open, even expanding capacity in July, when cases reached new peaks in late-July and early/mid-August. The box-office did quite well back in July/August. Theaters in general are considered safe since there's reserved seating, no eating allowed, and proper ventilation in addition to standard guideline practices like temperature checks of patrons before they enter and mandatory mask-wearing at all times. Aeon is also installing green/red lights on their seats to indicate when a seat is sold versus available, so there's even less interaction.

So far, and this is very important, no reported cases or clusters have been linked back to movie theaters.

What also helps theaters, and this is sort of the greedy side, but also important side of things economically, is that theaters are thriving right now (especially with Demon Slayer playing), and it'd take a significant event for the government to request they close under an emergency order. What could happen, if cases continue to climb, is for theaters to revert back to 50% capacity every day of the week again like before September 19th (October 16th for Toho). So right now, I wouldn't be particularly concerned unless there's an outbreak ahead.

Also, the economic boom that Kimetsu no Yaiba (Demon Slayer) has had for the market is extraordinary. Some estimates have its box office, manga sales, and all the various collaborations (such as with the food and retail industries) it's involved in adding up to ¥500 billion ($4.8 billion) in revenue this year alone.

What if the increase in case can make people afraid to go out (for movie) than before (rather than the gov apply the curfew) ?

This is true too, and would be the key factor in things slowing down. This will be noticeable if the box office begins to drop off, like back in February and March before the shutdowns began. The box-office definitely didn't slow in August when cases were peaking at the time.

July/August gave us a blockbuster (From Today, It's My Turn!), a sequel that outperformed its predecessor (Confidence Man JP 2), and allowed Fate/stay night: Heaven's Feel - III to open nearly as high as its predecessors, and then go on to become the highest grossing film of the trilogy.

We'll just need to wait and see how the public reacts in the coming days. If cases remain around this level (1,500 cases or so) for awhile, I don't think it'll have much of an impact as it didn't hurt August. If the cases begin to reach higher levels, there may be some concern. But hopefully they begin to trend downward again, sooner rather than later.

2.8 Million HKD in Hong Kong, biggest Opening day in 2020

Demon Slayer: Mugen Train - Daily Performance Tracker

10/16 - Fri.: ¥1,268,724,700 ($12.0 million) / 910,507
10/17 - Sat.: ¥1,701,723,350 ($16.2 million) / 1,270,234
10/18 - Sun.: ¥1,652,669,400 ($15.7 million) / 1,239,752
10/19 - Mon.: ¥735,000,000 ($7.0 million) / 545,000
10/20 - Tues.: ¥545,000,000 ($5.1 million) / 395,000
10/21 - Wed.: ¥635,000,000 ($6.0 million) / 505,000
10/22 - Thur.: ¥465,000,000 ($4.5 million) / 340,000
10/23 - Fri.: ¥700,000,000 ($6.7 million) / 510,000
10/24 - Sat.: ¥1,500,944,600 ($14.3 million) / 1,115,182
10/25 - Sun.: ¥1,540,504,150 ($14.7 million) / 1,157,654
10/26 - Mon.: ¥620,000,000 ($5.9 million) / 460,000
10/27 - Tues.: ¥410,000,000 ($3.9 million) / 300,000
10/28 - Wed.: ¥575,000,000 ($5.5 million) / 430,000
10/29 - Thur.: ¥390,000,000 ($3.7 million) / 285,000
10/30 - Fri.: ¥555,000,000 ($5.3 million) / 405,000
10/31 - Sat.: ¥1,212,312,550 ($11.6 million) / 887,893
11/01 - Sun.: ¥1,286,354,600 ($12.3 million) / 1,140,390 *Discount Day*
11/02 - Mon: ¥820,000,000 ($7.8 million) / 605,000 *Holiday Boosted*
11/03 - Tues.: ¥1,230,000,000 ($11.8 million) / 925,000 *Holiday*
11/04 - Wed.: ¥350,000,000 ($3.3 million) / 260,000
11/05 - Thur.: ¥230,000,000 ($2.2 million) / 170,000
11/06 - Fri.: ¥270,000,000 ($2.6 million) / 200,000
11/07 - Sat.: ¥863,827,750 ($8.3 million) / 628,614
11/08 - Sun.: ¥909,098,150 ($8.8 million) / 667,179
11/09 - Mon.: ¥290,000,000 ($2.8 million) / 215,000 *est.*
11/10 - Tues.: ¥195,000,000 ($1.9 million) / 145,000 *est.*
11/11 - Wed.: ¥270,000,000 ($2.6 million) / 210,000 *est.*
11/12 - Thur.: ¥180,000,000 ($1.7 million) / 135,000 *est.*

28-Day Cumulative Total: ¥21,418,611,650 ($204.4 million) / 16,078,943 *est.*

Thursday was only down 20/21% versus last week.

so now we can check presale for this coming Sat yet?

Thank you.

It's early, ~32 hours out, but here are how some key locations are shaping up:

Toho Namba: 22 Showings [8 at 80% full; 5 at 50% full]
Toho Shinjuku: 27 Showings [9 at 80% full; 4 at 50% full]
Toho Umeda: 23 Showings [0 at 80% full; 3 at 50% full]*
Toho Nishinomiya: 22 Showings [0 at 80% full; 3 at 50% full]

*Regarding Umeda, it's one of the largest theaters in the country and they have the film on their three biggest screens (in addition to others, adding up to over 10,000 seats), one of which seats over 700, and two just shy of 500. Many of the showings are at least 30/40%% full right now, very spread out throughout the day, so expect most of them to easily reach 50% or more by Saturday.

And overall, like also at Nishinomiya above, a lot of showings are in that 20%-40% full range at the moment. It, and many other locations will hit the 50%-80% full marks in the next 24 hours or so. The larger auditoriums always fill up the fastest. I'll update this tomorrow. I'm expecting this Saturday to more or less match last Saturday.

Also, this is probably (*probably*) the last weekend that it averages over 20 showings a day nationwide, which it's done for five weekends now, since Stand By Me, Doraemon 2 opens next week and will chip away at it a bit.

Stand By Me, Doraemon 2 will surely compete with Demon Slayer a lot, right?

The first "Stand By Me Doraemon" movie opened with ¥767 million. I don't see the sequel doing enough on OW to out-gross Demon Slayer's 6th weekend.

It's likely to do less than the first film, I imagine. It'll do well, no doubt, but the original had the novelty factor going for it that can't be replicated. And aside from chipping away a bit at Demon Slayer's ongoing record screenings/showings/seating, it shouldn't provide any direct competition. Doraemon is a very young, family skewing series. It won't come near dethroning Demon Slayer next weekend, but it will help liven the box office up some more.

I hope Stand by Me Doraemon 2 does better than this year's doraemon film released in August.