After ‘Demon Slayer,’ New Anime Blockbuster Shatters Expectations in Major Domestic Box Office Debut

In a highly unusual turn of events, an anime movie is set to top the domestic box office charts for the second time in a single year. It hasn’t been all that long since Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba – The Movie: Infinity Castle shattered records and made $70 million in its domestic debut. The movie has since overtaken its predecessor, Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba – The Movie: Mugen Train, to become the biggest anime movie in global box office history. Now, another anime title is set to follow in Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle‘s footsteps, although to a less-earth-shattering degree. Chainsaw Man – The Movie: Reze Arc debuted in North America this week, having already played in its home country of Japan.

The movie is set after the events of the hit anime series, based on the manga created by Tatsuki Fujimoto. Chainsaw Man grossed around $8.5 million on its first day of release domestically, and is currently projected to make more than $15 million over the weekend. While this is nowhere near the $70 million that Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle grossed in its debut, it’s enough to earn the new film the number one spot. What this also means is that last week’s champion, the horror sequel Black Phone 2, will likely slip to second place. It’ll compete for the spot with this week’s big new Hollywood releases, Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere and Regretting You. Each of these films is currently looking at a weekend haul of between $10 million and $12 million.

‘Chainsaw Man’ Has a Near-Perfect Audience Score on Rotten Tomatoes

Chainsaw Man has already generated $71 million globally, with the majority of that number having been generated in Japan and South Korea. By comparison, Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle had grossed over $200 million in Japan before debuting domestically. It now sits at a massive $640 million haul worldwide. Like that movie, Chainsaw Man has also been embraced by critics and crowds. It currently holds a 96% critics’ score on Rotten Tomatoes, while its audience score on the aggregator website is even higher, at a near-perfect 99%. The success of Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle and Chainsaw Man proves just how popular anime has become worldwide, thanks mainly to the availability of top titles on streaming platforms. You can check both films out in theaters, and stay tuned to Collider for more updates.