Yes its 9th weekend vs 4th weekend so its not exactly and apples-to-apples comparison. For instance movies that have taken longer to reach the same mark later are expected to have better WoM thus better legs. There are other factors in play as you have mentioned and its clear that DS will not stop at "just" $55m from here on. One additional factor is that DS will be playing in theaters for a very long time in comparison to Frozen 2 which will also help it in the long run.

Yes it's true, I forgot that DS will stay in theaters for months to come

Weekends aren't good comp. I am using weeks as comp.

With slight bit of difference in dates, Frozen 2 Week 1 (23 -29 Nov) can be put with DS Week 6 (Nov 21-27).

Before the comparison: DS ¥24.424Bn / F2 ¥0.323Bn

Week 6 of DS (1 of F2): ¥2.04Bn / ¥2.54Bn (80%)
Week 7 (2): ¥1.69Bn / ¥2.12Bn (80%)
Week 8 (3): ¥1.09Bn expected / ¥1.58Bn (69%)

Total: ¥29.25Bn / ¥6.55Bn

Frozen 2 added ¥6.81Bn after this. The run was impacted by Covid, else could have been ¥7.15-7.25Bn. Now there's competition value to put to which Star Wars gave but that far in run perhaps it won't be much. Also there may be some local film & WW84 is there so I am gonna ignore it.

Last 2 weeks did 80% of F2, this week may be abnormal. Using 80%, we can expect DS to add ¥5.75Bn. That will be ¥35Bn. Say it overperforms and add exactly what F2 did, that will be ¥36.4Bn.

¥35-36.5Bn.

This will depend much on the 2-3 holiday weeks and the boost it will get when it is at top 1. I don't have experience about how much boost a movie can get after it passed a 20 years old record current holder. Maybe the news and media will report very much and it can get attentiom from people who rarely go to cinema these time.

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.: ¥1,185,000,000 ($11.3 million) / 900,000 *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.: ¥325,000,000 ($3.1 million) / 240,000
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.: ¥315,000,000 ($3.0 million) / 230,000
11/10 - Tues.: ¥220,000,000 ($2.1 million) / 160,000
11/11 - Wed.: ¥295,000,000 ($2.8 million) / 230,000
11/12 - Thur.: ¥200,000,000 ($1.9 million) / 145,000
11/13 - Fri.: ¥310,000,000 ($3.0 million) / 225,000
11/14 - Sat.: ¥795,343,500 ($7.6 million) / 611,418
11/15 - Sun.: ¥726,313,550 ($6.9 million) / 535,986
11/16 - Mon.: ¥265,000,000 ($2.5 million) / 195,000
11/17 - Tues.: ¥165,000,000 ($1.6 million) / 120,000
11/18 - Wed.: ¥240,000,000 ($2.3 million) / 185,000
11/19 - Thur.: ¥165,000,000 ($1.6 million) / 120,000
11/20 - Fri.: ¥240,000,000 ($2.3 million) / 170,000
11/21 - Sat.: ¥439,606,550 ($4.2 million) / 314,726
11/22 - Sun.: ¥592,738,550 ($5.7 million) / 433,315
11/23 - Mon.: ¥460,110,250 ($4.4 million) / 357,741 *Holiday*
11/24 - Tues.: ¥125,000,000 ($1.2 million) / 90,000
11/25 - Wed.: ¥160,000,000 ($1.5 million) / 120,000
11/26 - Thur.: ¥120,000,000 ($1.1 million) / 85,000
11/27 - Fri.: ¥195,000,000 ($1.9 million) / 130,000
11/28 - Sat.: ¥556,443,300 ($5.3 million) / 392,017
11/29 - Sun: ¥448,060,450 ($4.3 million) / 320,031
11/30 - Mon.: ¥140,000,000 ($1.3 million) / 105,000
12/01 - Tues.: ¥170,000,000 ($1.6 million) / 145,000 *Discount Day*
12/02 - Wed.: ¥125,000,000 ($1.2 million) /100,000
12/03 - Thur.: ¥x95,000,000 ($0.9 million) / x70,000
12/04 - Fri.: ¥145,000,000 ($1.4 million) / 105,000
12/05 - Sat.: ¥319,013,550 ($3.1 million) / 225,976
12/06 - Sun.: ¥336,505,700 ($3.2 million) / 239,874
12/07 - Mon.: ¥x95,000,000 ($0.9 million) / x70,000 *est.*

53-Day Cumulative Total: ¥28,943,575,300 ($275.9 million) / 21,595,216

Note: Mon.-Fri. are estimates (excluding Holiday Mondays), therefore adding up each day won't equal the actual total.

JUST SAW all your posts about THE ORICON record for this year (I'm really late with the news) and damn! Even if you combine the top 2-10 sales it still isn't close to DS sales. DS sold 82 million copies and the combined sales for top 2 to 9 is approximately 57 million!

(C)吾峠呼世晴／集英社・アニプレックス・ufotable

Weekend Actuals (12/05-06):
01 (01) ¥655,519,250 ($6.3 million), -35%, ¥28,848,575,300 ($275.0 million), Demon Slayer: Mugen Train (Toho/Aniplex) WK8
02 (---) ¥399,000,000 ($3.8 million), 0, ¥728,000,000 ($7.0 million), Takizawa Kabuki Zero 2020: The Movie (Shochiku) NEW
03 (02) ¥244,864,350 ($2.4 million), -17%, ¥1,498,402,100 ($14.4 million), Stand By Me, Doraemon 2 (Toho) WK3
04 (---) ¥171,510,198 ($1.6 million), 0, ¥171,510,198 ($1.6 million), Fate/Grand Order - Divine Realm of the Round Table: Camelot 1 (Aniplex) NEW
05 (---) ¥x85,000,000 ($820,000), 0, ¥134,083,590 ($1.3 million), Silent Tokyo (Toei) NEW
06 (---) ¥x60,000,000 ($580,000), 0, ¥x83,492,800 ($0.8 million), The Witches (Warner Bros.) NEW
07 (---) ¥x35,000,000 ($335,000), 0, ¥x53,374,300 ($0.5 million), Evangelion 1.0: You Are (Not) Alone [4DX re-release] (Toho/Toei/Khara) NEW
08 (03) ¥x24,347,710 ($234,000), -48%, ¥627,524,890 ($6.0 million), Legacy of Dr. Death: The Black File (Warner Bros.) WK4
09 (04) ¥x23,418,100 ($225,000), -38%, ¥365,270,548 ($3.5 million), The Legend of Hei (Aniplex/Team Joy) WK5
10 (05) ¥x22,027,600 ($212,000), -37%, ¥1,144,105,700 ($11.0 million), The Voice of Sin (Toho) WK6

>Demon Slayer: Mugen Train keeps on dominating. It's almost ¥10 billion ahead of Spirited Away after 8 weeks with almost no holiday support, and will surpass the long-thought unbeatable Hayao Miyazaki film to become the #1 film of all-time (revenue AND admissions) in a a couple weeks or so. Still seems on track for ~¥35 billion ($330 million+) or so, but we'll need to see what it's capable of doing when it reaches the holiday period in a few weeks.

>Stand By Me, Doraemon 2 continues to hold well, and with the eventual holiday boost in a few weeks, it'll likely get over the ¥3 billion (~$30 million) milestone. This is much lower than the original film, of course, but a lot of factors have contributed to it under-performing, so getting a gross around the standard of the annual films in the franchise is good enough.

>Takizawa Kabuki Zero 2020 can in WAY above what I was estimating due to a whopping average ticket price of ¥2,891! ($27.78!), the highest I have ever seen while tracking the box office over the past 11 years. It sold "just" 138,000 admissions over the weekend frame across 191 screens, and after previews, sold 235,000 admissions.

>Fate/Grand Order, at least the first film in a two-part series (a second film was announced for Spring), wasn't able to match the success of the recent Fate/stay night films in the overall Fate series, but still had a fair debut. It sold 103,649 admissions over the weekend across 178 screens. Not being animated by ufotable likely hindered it. It'll be very frontloaded of course, so I don't believe it'll reach ¥1 billion (~$10 million), but the holidays and a likely 4DX expansion later in its run could eventually get it there.

>Silent Tokyo, The Witches, and Evangelion 1.0: You Are (Not) Alone are all still estimated EXCEPT for their cumulative totals. I like to wait a day or so if there are more than one or two outstanding actuals, but I'll come back to edit this post when their numbers are available.

This was a great weekend to begin December 2020, but thanks to Takizawa Kabuki Zero 2020 having an insane average ticket price and coming in way above estimates and most films seeing upticks, it turned into an EXCELLENT first weekend of December. The Top 10 (pending a few actuals to come in) is only down ~5% versus the same weekend last year. Very, very impressive.

Top Opening Weekends: 2021
Gross ¥ ($) / Admissions [Screen Count] - Film (Distributor)

¥1 billion ↨
¥500 million ↨
¥399.0 million ($3.8 million) / 138,000 [191] - Takizawa Kabuki Zero 2020: The Movie (Shochiku)
¥300 million ↨
¥200 million ↨
¥171.5 million ($1.6 million) / 103,649 [178] - Fate/Grand Order - Divine Realm of the Round Table: Camelot Part 1 (Aniplex)
¥100 million ↑

Legend:
¥1 billion+ (Exemplary) / ¥500 million+ (Great) / ¥300 million+ (Good) / ¥200 million+ (Acceptable) / ¥100 million+ (Mediocre)

And here is the Final Top Opening Weekends of 2020 ranking (this will be included in the 2021 chart updates until January):

Top Grossing Films: 2021 will be added once a film from December reaches ¥1 billion, which will be next week since Takizawa Kabuki Zero 2020: The Movie will already break the mark after its great debut.

Top Grossing Films: 2020
Gross ¥ ($) / Admissions [Days In Release] - Film (Distributor)

¥28.85 billion ($275.0 million) / 21.53 million [52] - Demon Slayer: Mugen Train (Toho/Aniplex)
¥10 billion ↨
¥7.27 billion ($66.5 million) / 4.85 million [F] - Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker (Disney)
¥5.34 billion ($50.2 million) / 4.21 million [E] - From Today, It's My Turn! (Toho)
¥5 billion ↨
¥4.72 billion ($43.4 million) / 3.40 million [F] - Parasite (Bitter's End)
¥3.81 billion ($35.3 million) / 2.81 million [F] - The Confidence Man JP: Episode of the Princess (Toho)
¥3.27 billion ($30.8 million) / 2.71 million [E] - Doraemon: Nobita's New Dinosaur (Toho)
¥3 billion ↨
¥2.64 billion ($25.1 million) / 1.68 million [E] - Tenet (Warner Bros.)
¥2.30 billion ($21.8 million) / 1.73 million [F] - Stigmatized Properties (Shochiku)
¥2.27 billion ($21.4 million) / 1.72 million [F] - Tapestry (Toho)
¥2.06 billion ($18.8 million) / 1.48 million [F] - Kaiji: Final Game (Toho)
¥2.01 billion ($19.4 million) / 1.39 million [79] - Violet Evergarden: The Movie (Shochiku)
¥2 billion ↨
¥1.92 billion ($18.1 million) / 1.18 million [E] - Fate/stay night: Heaven's Feel III - Spring Song (Aniplex)
¥1.79 billion ($16.3 million) / 1.35 million [F] - My Hero Academia: Heroes Rising (Toho)
¥1.50 billion ($14.4 million) / 1.20 million [17] - Stand By Me, Doraemon 2 (Toho)
¥1.50 billion ($13.8 million) / 1.23 million [F] - Welcome Back, Tora-san! (Shochiku)
¥1.41 billion ($12.9 million) / 1.13 million [F] - The Howling Village (Toei)
¥1.35 billion ($12.3 million) / 1.03 million [F] - Cats (Toho-Towa)
¥1.34 billion ($12.3 million) / 1.03 million [F] - Wotakoi: Love is Hard for Otaku (Toho)
¥1.19 billion ($11.0 million) / 0.92 million [F] - Stolen Identity 2 (Toho)
¥1.18 billion ($10.8 million) / 0.95 million [F] - Kiss Me at the Stroke of Midnight (Shochiku)
¥1.17 billion ($11.1 million) / 0.89 million [E] - The Asadas! (Toho)
¥1.16 billion ($10.6 million) / 0.88 million [F] - Lupin III: The First (Toho)
¥1.15 billion ($10.9 million) / 0.94 million [E] - Crayon Shin-chan: Crash! Rakuga Kingdom and the Almost Four Heroes (Toho)
¥1.14 billion ($11.0 million) / 0.87 million [38] - The Voice of Sin (Toho)
¥1.09 billion ($10.0 million) / 0.83 million [F] - Murder at Shijinso (Toho)
¥1 billion ↨
¥950.0 million ($8.7 million) / 0.76 million [E] - AI Amok (Warner Bros.)
¥900.0 million ($8.3 million) / 0.74 million [E] - Kamen Rider Reiwa: The First Generation (Toei)
¥900.0 million ($8.3 million) / 0.62 million [E] - Jumanji: The Next Level (Sony)
¥890.0 million ($8.2 million) / 0.63 million [E] - Ford v. Ferrari (Fox)
¥864.1 million ($8.2 million) / 0.67 million [45] - Your Eyes Tell (Gaga)
¥855.0 million ($8.0 million) / 0.78 million [E] - Spirited Away (2001) [re-release] (Toho)
¥852.9 million ($8.0 million) / 0.77 million [E] - Princess Mononoke (1997) [re-release] (Toho)
¥797.9 million ($7.4 million) / 0.63 million [E] - Love Me, Love Me Not (Toho)
¥796.4 million ($7.2 million) / 0.61 million [E] - Fukushima 50 (Shochiku)
¥790.0 million ($7.4 million) / 0.59 million [E] - Onward (Disney)
¥770.0 million ($7.2 million) / 0.56 million [E] - 1917 (Toho-Towa)
¥750.0 million ($6.8 million) / 0.65 million [E] - Yo-Kai Watch Jam: Yo-Kai Academy Y - Can a Cat be a Hero? (Toho)
¥709.0 million ($6.6 million) / 0.64 million [E] - Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind [1984 re-release] (Toho)
¥700.0 million ($6.5 million) / 0.55 million [E] - Mask Ward (Warner Bros.)
¥689.5 million ($6.4 million) / 0.51 million [E] - Midsommar (Phantom Film)
¥665.9 million ($6.3 million) / 0.53 million [E] - Midnight Swan (Kino Films)
¥660.0 million ($6.0 million) / 0.50 million [E] - Last Letter (Toho)
¥658.9 million ($6.0 million) / 0.52 million [E] - Twiceborn (Nikkatsu)
¥634.0 million ($5.9 million) / 0.49 million [E] - Yowamushi Pedal (Shochiku)
¥627.5 million ($6.0 million) / 0.49 million [24] - Legacy of Dr. Death: The Black File (Warner Bros.)
¥622.0 million ($5.8 million) / 0.48 million [E] - The Cornered Mouse Dreams of Cheese (Phantom Film)
¥600.0 million ($5.6 million) / 0.45 million [E] - Made in the Abyss: Dawn of the Deep Soul (Kadokawa)
¥593.4 million ($5.6 million) / 0.34 million [E] - Break the Silence: The Movie (Avex Pictures)
¥540.5 million ($5.2 million) / 0.42 million [E] - Dolittle (Toho-Towa)
¥539.9 million ($5.2 million) / 0.41 million [E] - The Real Exorcist (Nikkatsu)
¥500.0 million ($4.7 million) / 0.35 million [E] - Birds of Prey (Warner Bros.)
¥500 million ↑ (COVID-19 Expansion)

NOTE: Any figures for a film that earned below ¥1 billion that is no longer playing are rough estimates. It's rare for final figures for films earning below that mark to be reported, but I'm going to include them this year given the circumstances. Just remember: They're rough estimates.

Legend:
¥10 billion+ (Uber-Blockbuster) / ¥5 billion+ (Blockbuster) / ¥3 billion+ (Hit) / ¥2 billion+ (Respectable) / ¥1 billion+ (Commercial Success)

2019 vs. 2020 Breakdown (Top 10 Films)

Week 1: ¥1.484 vs ¥1.592 (+7%)
Week 2: ¥1.726 vs ¥1.662 (-4%)
Week 3: ¥1.621 vs ¥1.296 (-20%)
Week 4: ¥1.471 vs ¥1.278 (-13%)
Week 5: ¥1.668 vs ¥1.137 (-32%)
Week 6: ¥1.992 vs ¥1.037 (-48%)
Week 7: ¥1.342 vs ¥1.136 (-15%)
Week 8: ¥1.427 vs ¥1.062 (-26%)
Week 9: ¥1.849 vs ¥.740 (-60%)
Week 10: ¥1.709 vs ¥.605 (-65%)
Week 11: ¥1.934 vs ¥.505 (-74%)
Week 12: ¥1.298 vs ¥.536 (-59%)
Week 13: ¥1.278 vs N/A (-100%)
Week 14: ¥.774 vs N/A (-100%)
Week 15: ¥2.007 vs N/A (-100%)
Week 16: ¥2.139 vs N/A (-100%)
Week 17: ¥2.550 vs N/A (-100%)
Week 18: ¥2.441 vs N/A (-100%)
Week 19: ¥1.369 vs N/A (-100%)
Week 20: ¥1.560 vs ¥.26 (-98%)
Week 21: ¥1.585 vs ¥.85 (-95%)
Week 22: ¥1.860 vs ¥.99 (-95%)
Week 23: ¥2.211 vs ¥.154 (-93%)
Week 24: ¥2.215 vs ¥.157 (-93%)
Week 25: ¥2.059 vs ¥.249 (-88%)
Week 26: ¥2.306 vs ¥.557 (-76%)
Week 27: ¥1.779 vs ¥.471 (-74%)
Week 28: ¥3.100 vs ¥.449 (-86%)
Week 29: ¥2.989 vs ¥.878 (-71%)
Week 30: ¥2.899 vs ¥1.075 (-63%)
Week 31: ¥2.660 vs ¥.638 (-76%)
Week 32: ¥3.377 vs ¥1.012 (-70%)
Week 33: ¥2.501 vs ¥1.527 (-39%)
Week 34: ¥2.178 vs ¥1.263 (-42%)
Week 35: ¥2.153 vs ¥1.382 (-36%)
Week 36: ¥1.585 vs ¥1.027 (-35%)
Week 37: ¥1.693 vs ¥1.319 (-22%)
Week 38: ¥1.420 vs ¥1.303 (-8%)
Week 39: ¥.955 vs ¥.942 (-1%)
Week 40: ¥1.454 vs ¥.838 (-42%)
Week 41: ¥.847 vs. ¥.650 (-23%)
Week 42: ¥1.259 vs. ¥3.908 (+210%)
Week 43: ¥1.092 vs. ¥3.561 (+226%)
Week 44: ¥1.135 vs. ¥3.127 (+176%)
Week 45: ¥1.311 vs. ¥2.252 (+72%)
Week 46: ¥1.006 vs. ¥1.995 (+98%)
Week 47: ¥2.508 vs. ¥1.717 (-31%)
Week 48: ¥2.104 vs. ¥1.536 (-27%)
Week 49: ¥1.809 vs. ¥1.721 (-5%)
Week 50: ¥1.714
Week 51: ¥2.530
Week 52: ¥1.928

2019: ¥89.689 vs. 2020: ¥48.504 (-46% after 49 Weeks)

Top 10 Totals in billions of Yen.

DS run still looks good, very good!

@Corpse I have a question: You said earlier that probably untill the next Evangelion film in january, nothing should challenge DS for #1 spot,
but I've checked and last couple of Pokemon films all opened over ¥500 million.

Is that close to what DS is aiming in the X-mass weekend, or the holyday boost will be enough to keep DS safe?
Or perhaps, due to the current situation, we should not expect Pokemon Coco to open that high?

DS will do more during the holiday due to boost though I assume Pokémon will do better over weekdays and might take #1 specially during its opening days. Recently Pokémon has had a slight dip and with COVID still being present and multiple delays I'm sure it will open a little lesser than usual.

Yeah, kids movies are the most affected by the current situation.

If I remember right, there is an exam week somewhere in December in Japan.

Gintama: The Final Movie will have Kimetsu no Yaiba illustration drawn by Hideaki Sorachi given to the moviegoers in the first week.

https://wwws.warnerbros.co.jp/gintamamovie/present/
https://www.oricon.co.jp/news/2178664/full/

This is true example of just how impactful Demon Slayer has become in Japan! A giveaway of an illustration from a different series is going to be handed out to first-week moviegoers to help bolster attendance. No doubt the final Gintama film was going to do well anyway, but now they'll be able to draw in some of Demon Slayer's vast fanbase over the extended New Year. Genius marketing.

ARQandARG, you mentioned Pokemon: Coco, and while it does have a chance of dethroning Demon Slayer, I'm not expecting it to because it opens on the final giveaway weekend for Demon Slayer. And as others have mentioned, COVID is mostly only affecting films skewing toward families/children, like Pokemon, so its opening may be deflated like the recent Doraemon films.

The final Gintama movie was another possibility, opening on Jan. 8th, but now with the Demon Slayer giveaway being given out to moviegoers who see it, it'll very likely dethrone Demon Slayer.

This will mostly be during the week of Dec. 21-25. It varies a bit by prefecture though, and some will probably begin the week of Dec. 14th, too.

It’ll probdbly dethrone DS... because of how much people like DS

@Corpse, a few days ago you were saying that Demon Slayer will see a 50% increase over Christmas week compared to the week before.

And when it comes to New Year Week, will it be more likely to see an increase closer to 50% or closer to 100% over Christmas week ?

I ask this question because I have tried to watch and find out how to compare the weeks of vacation of other films compared to Demon Slayer but I have not found concrete examples that allow us to fully understand how to will feature Demon Slayer's vacation weeks.

I know. It's a bizarre situation, that's for sure!

But this is nice. The box office and movie theaters are doing just fine right now, but studios and distributors collaborating like this to further improve the situation is great. Warner Bros. Japan is probably one of the few movie companies (in addition to small independent distributors) actually hurting right now since Hollywood is either delaying their films or putting them on streaming services, so any boost for their local films is great news.

This is because you won't be able to, really. The holiday boost greatly differs between different films over huge margins (from increases in just the teens up 1,000% or more) depending on who they're appealing to. One adult-skewing film doesn't equal another adult-skewing film, just like how one family-skewing film doesn't equal another family-skewing film.

Demon Slayer is appealing to a very broad audience, so it shouldn't see a "small" boost nor a "large" boost, so I'm expecting something on a normal scale (50%-100% range). But we'll just need to wait and see. New Year is pretty much always bigger than Christmas (not a holiday), so it'll be noticeably bigger. And it's hard to find a film that appeals to all demographics on a large scale to use as a comparison. I honestly can't even think of one in the last decade that was released in November/December.

Just registered to add some comments to previous posts.



A Silent Voice earned 2.3 billion yen in 2016. Most people overlooked it because of another phenomenon in the market called "Your Name" but it earned a lot, especially for only opening (and staying mostly) in 120 theatres for its first run (Violet is the widest opening for a KyoAni film with 153 theatres followed by the K-On! movie (committee led by TBS) which opened in 132 theatres). Since both it and Violet Evergarden are made with Kyoto Animation leading the production committee for the film, they'll earn a lot of the 35-45% total gross production committees make from films. It didn't have a lot of marketing, so the profit should be pretty good for them.



Lots to unpack here. First, home video is expensive in Japan regardless of publisher (though you could argue that King Records has the cheapest prices). The most viewed drama of 2019-2020, TV Asahi's "Aibou" has its home video release into two DVD-boxes of 17,500 yen each (35,000 yen total) or one BD-Box of 38,000 yen (all excluding tax). That was seen by an average of 14.7% of the Kanto region when it aired for each episode and yet it costs around $350-380 USD to buy it. Aniplex usually prices 12/13 episode shows into 6-7 volumes totaling around 42,000 yen (and most other publishers of anime generally end up around there after all volumes are accounted for). Home video used to be the primary way that anime made its revenue back in Japan, so they were more per-episode of a show than other titles were in terms of home video, but all home video in Japan is much more expensive than what you'd be familiar with in the US (barring some Western releases like Disney films at 3,500-4,000 yen each).

Second, you are confusing Aniplex of America with Aniplex (of Japan). Aniplex of America is a subsidary of Aniplex (Japan) who distributes their titles in the North America region. The $150-200 price you're quoting are prices set by Aniplex of America for their home video releases, not Aniplex (Japan). They distributed a few movie releases in the US and had higher ticket prices likely because they bought out those theatres and charged a higher price to get into them. Whenever they've distributed through Fathom Events (much more lately), Fathom charges the same price as they do with any other film. The days of "Aniplex meaning higher ticket prices" aren't true anymore in North America.

Third, Aniplex (Japan) doesn't set prices for tickets in Japan. It's not "because they collaborated with Toho" that Demon Slayer ticket prices are what they are; it's because pretty much every movie of theirs is the same price as other films barring special screenings (talk shows, different formats, discounts).


The Grand Order franchise is on a downward trend as the mobile game saw a big revenue decrease in 2019, the TV anime wasn't that popular and didn't boost the mobile game much, and it's one arc that's near the end of the first portion. It's not something people can go see without knowing aspects of the mobile game story, so it wouldn't do well regardless.



Takizawa had a few weeks of screenings in Tokyo, Kyoto, and Nagoya at 4,000 yen per ticket and was sold at 3000 yen specialty screening tickets for its main run this weekend, thus the high average ticket price.

You used to include 11th place and beyond, but since you didn't include it this time, Rentrak has Violet Evergarden wk12 at 15,498,800 yen for a total of 2,014,286,250 yen. This is the first weekend that Violet Evergarden hasn't been in the top 10 since it released in mid-September in either admissions/gross.

Welcome to the forum ultimatemegax

Thanks for the response(s) and clarification, ultimatemegax! Especially your elaboration on the home video topic. Violet Evergaden's week 12 total has been updated on the Top Grossing Films: 2020 chart.

And welcome to the forum.

Also, a question for you and all of new members over the past couple of months: How long have you guys been lurkers here prior to joining? And how did you find the forum? I've realized for quite some time now that a lot of lurkers frequent this thread, for a couple years at least, due to the amount of views it receives. Just curious how and where you guys came upon our forum. And definitely glad all of you have joined recently.

I think that many people post this thread In other places after it they make account.