The latest film in the anime series “Demon Slayer” topped the North American box office this week, earning a record $70 million in its opening weekend, industry estimates showed Sunday.
Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba – Infinity Castle: Part 1, the first film in a new trilogy based on the popular manga series, has topped the box office in the United States and Canada after becoming the third-highest-grossing film of all time in Japan.
“Sony-owned Crunchyroll is bringing Japanese anime into the American mainstream,” said Franchise Entertainment Research analyst David A. Gross, describing the film’s North American numbers as “astonishing.”
The film, which follows teenage fighter Tanjiro Kamado as he tries to save his sister who has been transformed into a demon, surpassed the previous opening weekend record for an anime film, the original 1999 Pokémon film.
The Conjuring: Last Righteous, the latest film in the popular horror franchise, dropped to second place, earning $26.1 million after grossing $84 million last weekend, according to estimates from Exhibitor Relations.
The Warner Bros. production once again stars Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga as Ed and Lorraine Warren, who this time battle a demon in a family home.
“Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale” came in third, earning $18.1 million.
“It’s an excellent start to the third installment in a dramatic film series,” Gross said.
The Lionsgate film “The Long Walk,” based on Stephen King’s 1979 novel, took fourth place, grossing $11.5 million.
“It’s a good start for a new psychological horror film, but mediocre for a Stephen King adaptation,” Gross said.
Disney’s Toy Story, which was re-released for its 30th anniversary, came in fifth, grossing $3.5 million
