Thanks, Kanroji! Since the weekend actuals are in a questionable state again this week, I'm going to post the 2021 Yearly Data information later today!

Not a good year for Hollywood/Imported films. They collapse 71% in 2020 versus 2019 ("understandable"), but dropped again from there in 2021. I thought this might be the case given how awful practically every release they had performed, but was hoping that *maybe* they saw at least some sign of recovery. But nope. And the first half of 2022 looks just as dismal for them, so here's hoping the second half of 2022 sees something, anything, happen.

Also, only 5 Hollywood films managed to earn over 1 billion in 2021, and four of them had Toho or Toho-Towa as their distributor. Eternals was the only imported film to reach the mark that was distributed by a non-Japanese company.

Japanese films saw an increase. Not a *huge* increase since 2020 was "only" down 23% for them versus 2019, but the 2021 increase puts them on normal levels again. In fact, 2021 was the THIRD best year of all time for Japanese films.

So... Japanese films had their 3rd biggest year of all time in 2021. And Hollywood/Imported films had their worst year in 49 years.

The contrast couldn't be more extreme right now.

Top Grossing Films: 2021 "Final"

01. ¥10.28 billion ($94.0 million) / 6.72 million - Evangelion 3.0+1.0: Thrice Upon a Time (Toho/Toei/Khara)
02. ¥7.65 billion ($70.5 million) / 5.48 million - Detective Conan: The Scarlet Bullet (Toho)
03. ¥6.60 billion ($60.0 million) / 4.74 million - Belle (Toho)
04. ¥4.55 billion ($40.1 million) / 1.43 million - Arashi Anniversary Tour 5x20 FILM "Record of Memories" (Shochiku) *Still Playing*
05. ¥4.50 billion ($41.1 million) / 3.37 million - Tokyo Revengers (Warner Bros.)
06. ¥4.35 billion ($39.9 million) / 3.09 million - Rurouni Kenshin: The Final Chapter - The Final (Warner Bros.)
07. ¥4.03 billion ($38.3 million) / 3.00 million - New Interpretation Record of the Three Kingdoms (Toho)
08. ¥3.81 billion ($36.5 million) / 2.83 million - Loved Like a Flower Bouquet (Tokyo Theaters, Co./Little More)
08. ¥3.81 billion ($34.4 million) / 2.78 million - Masquerade Night (Toho)
10. ¥3.67 billion ($33.4 million) / 2.42 million - F9: The Fast Saga (Toho-Towa)
11. ¥3.39 billion ($31.0 million) / 2.45 million - My Hero Academia: World Heroes' Mission (Toho) *Still Playing*
12. ¥2.78 billion ($26.9 million) / 2.26 million - Stand By Me, Doraemon 2 (Toho)
13. ¥2.72 billion ($24.3 million) / 1.88 million - 007: No Time to Die (Toho-Towa) *Still Playing*
14. ¥2.70 billion ($25.7 million) / 1.97 million - Poupelle of Chimney Town (Toho)
15. ¥2.50 billion ($22.8 million) / 1.77 million - Rurouni Kenshin: The Final Chapter - The Beginning (Warner Bros.)
16. ¥2.23 billion ($20.2 million) / 1.10 million - Mobile Suit Gundam: Hathaway (Shochiku)
17. ¥2.14 billion ($20.4 million) / 0.79 million - Takizawa Kabuki Zero 2020: The Movie (Shochiku)
18. ¥2.03 billion ($19.2 million) / 1.57 million - The Promised Neverland (Toho)
19. ¥2.02 billion ($18.4 million) / 1.63 million - Pokemon: Coco (Toho)
20. ¥1.90 billion ($18.3 million) / 1.37 million - Gintama: The Final (Warner Bros.)
20. ¥1.90 billion ($17.4 million) / 1.27 million - Godzilla vs. Kong (Toho)
22. ¥1.77 billion ($16.1 million) / 1.49 million - Crayon Shin-chan: Shrouded in Mystery! Flowers of Tenkazu Academy (Toho)
23. ¥1.72 billion ($15.2 million) / 1.31 million - And, the Baton Was Passed (Warner Bros.) *Still Playing*
24. ¥1.60 billion ($14.5 million) / 1.15 million - Character (Toho)
25. ¥1.43 billion ($12.5 million) / 0.94 million - Sword Art Online Progressive: Aria of a Starless Night (Aniplex) *Still Playing*
26. ¥1.42 billion ($12.8 million) / 1.04 million - The Fable II (Shochiku)
27. ¥1.39 billion ($12.3 million) / 1.03 million - What Did You Eat Yesterday? (Toho) *Still Playing*
28. ¥1.26 billion ($11.1 million) / 1.03 million - Sumikko Gurashi: The Magical Child of the Blue Moonlit Night (Asmik Ace) *Still Playing*
29. ¥1.25 billion ($11.7 million) / 0.85 million - Monster Hunter (Toho-Towa)
30. ¥1.24 billion ($10.8 million) / 0.97 million - I Don't Have Any Money Left in My Retirement Account! (Toei) *Still Playing*
30. ¥1.24 billion ($11.4 million) / 0.90 million - Detective Conan: The Scarlet Alibi (Toho)
32. ¥1.20 billion ($10.6 million) / 0.79 million - Eternals (Disney)
33. ¥1.19 billion ($11.0 million) / 0.92 million - Caution, Hazardous Wife: The Movie (Toho)
34. ¥1.18 billion ($10.3 million) / 0.89 million - Baragaki: Unbroken Samurai (Toho/Asmik Ace)
35. ¥1.12 billion ($10.3 million) / 0.96 million - A Morning of Farewell (Toei)
36. ¥1.06 billion ($9.5 million) / 0.83 million - Kaguya-sama: Love is War Final (Toho)
37. ¥1.00 billion ($9.1 million) / 0.78 million - Honey Lemon Soda (Shin-Toho)

The only still playing film still earning any trackable amount is Arashi, so the rankings should remain unchanged.

That's weird they are no longer releasing weekend actuals.

I'll try to look into it this week. I'm hoping it's just something temporary, but happening after the first week of the year seems like convenient timing.

No new additions this past weekend. Midnight Maiden War was the highest debut, 5th place, but missed ¥100 million over the weekend frame. It did earn ¥113 million ($992,000) on 82,000 admissions in its first three days in release though.


Top Opening Weekends: 2022
Gross ¥ ($) / Admissions [Screen Count] - Film (Distributor)

¥1.622 billion ($14.2 million) / 1,135,829 [418] - Jujutsu Kaisen 0 (Toho)
¥1 billion ↨
¥905.0 million ($7.9 million) / 584,000 [896] - Spider-Man: No Way Home (Sony)
¥500 million ↨
¥471.0 million ($4.1 million) / 331,000 [352] - The Confidence Man JP: Episode of Hero (Toho)
¥455.6 million ($4.0 million) / 302,443 [839] - Venom: Let There Be Carnage (Sony)
¥342.4 million ($3.0 million) / 244,000 [353] - Your Turn to Kill (Toho)
¥333.7 million ($2.9 million) / 264,000 [351] - 99.9: Criminal Lawyer (Shochiku)
¥300.3 million ($2.6 million) / 186,000 [822] - The Matrix Resurrections (Warner Bros.)
¥300 million ↨
¥200 million ↨
¥169.8 million ($1.5 million) / 114,000 [574] - The King's Man (Disney)
¥145.6 million ($1.3 million) / 117,000 [373] - The Boss Baby: Family Business (Toho-Towa, Gaga)
¥124.7 million ($1.1 million) / x97,000 [344] - Kamen Rider: Beyond Generations (Toei)
¥100 million ↑

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

So, 1st International Release happened to be Korea, then Taiwan. (Hong Kong &Macau might come more ahead, as their tenative dates are still February, 2022)

I swear I'd think the giveaway started over the weekdays instead of the weekend if I didn't know any better

Let's hope 4B final for NWH

Some still thinks that JJK Movie 0 can break ¥20B but I can not see more than ¥13B as it's dailies went below Weathering With You. But, is there any exception case that a film break out in later weeks of release with immersion of WOM &household name.

Well, I always had a question about the final box office of a film which is running as long as In the Corner of the World (1133 days), + Demon Slayer type dailies+OP+OW (¥4.6B), + Ultra leggy as Spirited Away (30x +)? This question always run in my brain? Does anyone know the potential answer?

Multipliers only tell a part of the story in regards to legs, DS was matching or coming close to those movies even later in its run but having a 30x multiplier with that opening would mean an 100+b movie which just isn't possible.

Generally when restrictions are in place, the weekends become weaker while the weekdays become stronger due to overall business being far more spread out. And after the first week or so after restrictions are put in place, all the daily holds become very strong.

Restrictions look to be in place through the end of February, so expect some very, very good holds for the next 4-5 weeks. Jujutsu Kaisen will be holding particularly well (probably remaining flat, enjoying single-digit holds week-to-week like it's currently experiencing) due to it having various giveaways over this period, too. But everything will generally be holding well through the rest of Winter.

Restrictions pretty much only limits how much a film earns in a single day due to theaters having capacity limits and closing early (limiting crowd gathering at a specific time/day), but the overall total remains largely unaffected. It just takes longer to get there.

Japan is a leggy market anyway, perhaps the leggiest market (at least major) in the world; they're fine waiting a month or two or three to go see a film in normal times, so it's not that big a deal waiting for a day to open up weeks/months later that fits their schedule due to theater restrictions. It's also helps that Japan is a market where piracy is nearly non-existent.

I know, but it's still funny here in particular. Giveaway weekend drops -20%, but then yesterday and today are like -2%, and even wed/tue/monday held excellently even if not as well. It's so weird to see.

Doraemon: What Am I for Momotaro (1981) : ¥500M (Rentals) / 900K admits. Some Short Films got theatrical release. Have been looking if there are some more.

Thanks Justlurking. I was just looking for a answer (although my question was a weird one) The numbers will be depressing for the entire Universe of Doraemon

Regarding Hong Kong and Macau, Jujutsu Kaisen Movie 0 will release on March. Now, it's officially confirmed that Korea is the 1st Oversea Market for the film. However, I am curious why MAPPA didn't thought of Oscar this year. (Do not scold me. You and I, both know that it can not win "Best Animated Feature" ahead of Luca, Encanto &even Belle)

Drops are less important since Thursday because United were not counted from Thursday 20 until Monday 24 following a change of system, this is what Mimorin mentioned, so difficult to have a real comparison with last week for Thursday 27 until Monday 31.

Ah that makes a lot more sense, I must've missed the notice. So while still excellent the drops are probably more along the 12-13% mark like wed/tue. Thanks!

Corpse do you see it improving in 2022? What do you think the reasons for it.Obviously Disney streaming is a major one but i think there's quite a a bit more to it.

Yeah, there are two major contributions to Hollywood's rapid decline in recent years. I shared the below a couple/few pages back:

-Hollywood's move to streaming services and shorter theatrical windows. Japan is a market that is pretty late to the digital era in general, and its box-office is known for being one of the leggiest in the world (it might be?), so the acceleration to digital/streaming is really harming Hollywood releases. Theaters in Japan are also anti-streaming, so they're boycotting films with theatrical windows. If a film is given a 30-day window, for instance, theaters are dropping them (regardless of performance) the day before they premiere on streaming. And we haven't had one premiere on streaming same-day as the theatrical release in a while, but several major chains boycotted them outright by not even playing them.

-Japan's rapidly changing demographics (or, rather, loss of them!) is having a big impact on Hollywood releases. Japan's population is aging and declining rapidly. There are fewer and fewer children/teens and family audiences every year, so companies (and films) like Disney that rely on them will begin (have begun) to struggle more and more. Even Japan is seeing this with some of their films (see the Pokémon franchise). It's becoming more important than ever to appeal to older audiences (50+) and females (who are making up about 2/3 of the moviegoing crowd in Japan now).

**********

As for their 2022 outlook... I don't like it. I don't think it's possible to come in below 2020 or 2021 (if they do, they can be declared dead), but it's still going to be WAY below normal levels (probably 50/60%+ less than normal if I had to guess). Disney has already removed Turning Red from their schedule. Warner Bros. recast Johnny Depp in Fantastic Beasts 3. And Mission Impossible 7 was moved to 2023. And Hollywood, Disney especially, has to do away with these very short 30/45 day theatrical windows too, at least in leggy markets like Japan.

The only "likely" blockbuster on paper for Hollywood is probably Jurassic World 3 (since NWH is going to fall a fair bit short), but the second film saw a bit of a decline from one, so a bigger (probably expected) decline for 3 could make ¥5 billion more challenging than you'd expect. (For reference, Jurassic Park 3 barely made ¥5 billion after dropping heavy from Park 2, which dropped from Park 1.)

Exceeded 4M views <(￣︶￣)>

If number of occupied bed in hospital exceed 50% Tokyo will enter full state of emergency (which include temporary closing of cinema), right now it's 48.5%...

Resident Evil: Welcome to Racoon City and Noise debuted this past weekend.

Resident Evil did "okay", debuting in third place, but only about 1/4 of the business that the Jovovich Resident Evil films (big franchise in Japan) debuted to. And Noise, not expected to do anything significant, debuted in fifth place, but at least got above ¥100 million over the weekend frame.

For the 3-day,

Resident Evil earned ¥229,229,200 ($1.99 million) on 149,358 admissions.
Noise earned ¥142,840,200 ($1.24 million) on 103,140 admissions.

Top Opening Weekends: 2022
Gross ¥ ($) / Admissions [Screen Count] - Film (Distributor)

¥1.622 billion ($14.2 million) / 1,135,829 [418] - Jujutsu Kaisen 0 (Toho)
¥1 billion ↨
¥905.0 million ($7.9 million) / 584,000 [896] - Spider-Man: No Way Home (Sony)
¥500 million ↨
¥471.0 million ($4.1 million) / 331,000 [352] - The Confidence Man JP: Episode of Hero (Toho)
¥455.6 million ($4.0 million) / 302,443 [839] - Venom: Let There Be Carnage (Sony)
¥342.4 million ($3.0 million) / 244,000 [353] - Your Turn to Kill (Toho)
¥333.7 million ($2.9 million) / 264,000 [351] - 99.9: Criminal Lawyer (Shochiku)
¥300.3 million ($2.6 million) / 186,000 [822] - The Matrix Resurrections (Warner Bros.)
¥300 million ↨
¥200 million ↨
¥169.8 million ($1.5 million) / 114,000 [574] - The King's Man (Disney)
¥161.0 million ($1.4 million) / 104,000 [603] - Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City (Sony)
¥145.6 million ($1.3 million) / 117,000 [373] - The Boss Baby: Family Business (Toho-Towa, Gaga)
¥124.7 million ($1.1 million) / x97,000 [344] - Kamen Rider: Beyond Generations (Toei)
¥109.0 million ($0.9 million) / x77,000 [350] - Noise (Warner Bros.)
¥100 million ↑

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

Starting next week, since the weekend actuals are currently not being released (and no information about this is known), I'll post the weekend results as I did WAY back in the past. The Top 10 rankings and figures for openers and select holdovers are still being released, so I'll be essentially posting this moving forward.

Top 10 for this past weekend (01/29-30) was:

01 (01) Jujutsu Kaisen 0 (Toho) Week 6
02 (02) The Confidence Man JP: Episode of Hero (Toho) Week 3
03 (---) Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City (Sony) NEW
04 (03) Spider-Man: No Way Home (Sony) Week 4
05 (---) Noise (Warner Bros.) NEW
06 (04) 99.9: Criminal Lawyer (Shochiku) Week 5
07 (---) Zenkamono (Nikkatsu, WOWOW) NEW
08 (06) House of Gucci (Toho-Towa) Week 3
09 (---) The French Dispatch of the Liberty, Kansas Evening Sun (Disney) NEW
10 (07) CODA (Gaga) Week 2