The Chainsaw Man Film Leads the U.S. Box Office in Debut Weekend
Can Sony claim to have repeated their success? In the wake of the box office performance of Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle, which grossed in excess of $600 million worldwide, Chainsaw Man – The Movie: Reze Arc has surpassed the $100M milestone worldwide, attaining a worldwide gross of over $108 million during its debut. The film outperformed the thriller Black Phone 2 ($12.9M) in its second week in theaters, as well as the music documentary Springsteen: Deliver Me From Nowhere with the talented Jeremy Allen White ($9M).
Notable American and International Results
Directed by director Tatsuya Yoshihara, the feature is a direct continuation of Chainsaw Man’s first season. It brought in $18.2 million domestically after a robust $5.2 million Saturday earnings and four-point-five-million-dollar Sunday take. Internationally, the MAPPA-produced film added $14.7M across 46 international territories, pushing its worldwide total to $60.4 million through Sony distribution ($43.1 million international, $18.2M domestic). Sony has yet to announce its official box office total.
Comparisons to Other Anime Hits
Promotional firm White Box Entertainment noted in prior discussions, contrasting the feature's anticipated earnings to the anime hit Jujutsu Kaisen 0, which earned $34 million in the domestic market in 2022 and opened to a comparable eighteen million dollars stateside. This movie's debut weekend matches that benchmark, while its $108M international sum presently stands a bit short of that movie's over $166 million total earnings. While it is improbable this Chainsaw Man film will earn the numbers of smash success the record-breaking Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle, this is still a huge win for the distributor.
Fan Engagement Efforts Drive Success
The studio and its partner the anime streaming service Crunchyroll have skillfully used audience interaction to drive their leadership at the cinema for anime films. The movie's marketing campaign kicked off at the Anime Expo in LA in July with a MAPPA presentation, unique experiences, and Pochita photo ops, followed by a major presence at NYCC including never-before-seen content, lotteries for fans, and further MAPPA discussions. Moreover, organizers held an exclusive fan screening for moviegoers and content creators as well after the last day of the event.
Looking Ahead
2025 stands as a major time for animated films, and for the company, which has an additional animated movie debuting in 2025 in Jujutsu Kaisen: Execution in late this year.
