The 3rd Kingdom Film Continues Reign at #1, 1st Crayon Shin-chan 3D CG Anime Film Debuts at #2 - Latest Updates

Kingdom: Unmei no Honō (Flames of Destiny), the third live-action film based on Yasuhisa Hara’s Kingdom manga, remained at the top spot in the Japanese box office for its second weekend. Within Friday to Sunday, the film sold 398,000 tickets, earning 594,779,530 yen (approximately US$4.16 million). Overall, the film has sold 1.57 million tickets, generating a cumulative total of 2,271,114,920 yen (about US$15.91 million). The film, which covers the manga’s Shi Ka (Zi Xia) arc and the Battle of Bayou, features the first joint battle of Shin (Xin) and Ō Ki (Wang Qi) as they defend against the invasion of the formidable Chō (Zhao) from the north. Anne (Anne Watanabe) joins the cast in the key role of Shi Ka (Zi Xia), with other new cast members including Kataoka Ainosuke VI as Fuu Ki (Feng Ji), Kōji Yamamoto as Chō Sō (Zhao Zhuang), Yuki Yamada as Man Goku (Wan Ji), Eri Murakawa as You Li (Yū Ri), and Hinako Sakurai as Dong Mei (Tō Bi). Returning cast members from the previous films include Kento Yamazaki, Ryō Yoshizawa, Takao Osawa, and Kanna Hashimoto. Shinsuke Satō returns as the director, working with scriptwriters Hara and Tsutomu Kuroiwa.

Shin Jigen! Crayon Shin-chan The Movie Chōnōryoku Dai Kessen: Tobetobe Temakizushi (New Dimension! Crayon Shin-chan the Movie Super-Powered Climactic Battle: Soaring Hand-Rolled Sushi), the first 3DCG anime film in the Crayon Shin-chan franchise, debuted at #2 on Friday. The film sold 322,000 tickets and earned 401 million yen (about US$2.8 million) in its opening weekend. The story follows kindergartener Shinnosuke, who gains telekinetic superpowers after a white light from space passes through Earth. A man named Mitsuru Hiriya also gains psychic powers from a counterpart black light and tries to destroy the Earth. Shinnosuke rises as the new hero to protect Japan in the face of fear. This film is the 31st installment in the Crayon Shin-chan franchise and took seven years to complete. Hitoshi Ōne directed the film and wrote the screenplay, while Shirogumi Inc. handled the animation.

Hayao Miyazaki’s latest feature film, The Boy and the Heron (Kimi-tachi wa Dō Ikiru ka, or How Do You Live?), dropped from #3 to #4 in the Japanese box office in its fourth weekend. From Friday to Sunday, the film earned 388,949,700 yen (about US$2.72 million), bringing its total to 5,480,158,400 yen (approximately US$38.39 million) from selling 3.61 million tickets. In its first three days, the film sold 1.003 million tickets, earning around US$13.2 million. During its Friday-Monday long weekend run (with July 17 being a holiday in Japan), it sold 1.353 million tickets and earned 2.149 billion yen (about US$15.53 million). The film, which opened simultaneously on IMAX alongside its general release in Japan on July 14, surpassed the opening earnings of Miyazaki’s renowned Academy Award-winning film Spirited Away and exceeded the earnings of his 2013 film The Wind Rises by 50%. It garnered over US$1.7 million from 44 IMAX screens, setting a new record for three-day opening sales. The Boy and the Heron is also the first Studio Ghibli film to have a simultaneous IMAX release. The film is screened in various formats, including Dolby Atmos, Dolby Cinema, and DTS:X. GKIDS acquired the film’s distribution rights for North America and plans to release it in theaters later this year. Miyazaki is credited with the original work, directing, and scriptwriting, while Takeshi Honda serves as the animation director. Joe Hisaishi composed the music, and Toshio Suzuki produced the film. The theme song “Chikyūgi” (Globe) is performed by Kenshi Yonezu.

Transformers: Beast Kakusei (Transformers: Rise of the Beasts), the first film in a planned trilogy for Paramount Pictures’ live-action Transformers franchise, debuted at #6. Although the film had already opened in North America on June 9, delayed from its original June 24, 2022 release, it earned an estimated US$60.5 million in its opening weekend in the United States, screening across 3,678 theaters. Directed by Steven Caple Jr., the film stars Anthony Ramos and Dominique Fishback, with a voice cast including Michelle Yeoh, Pete Davidson, Peter Cullen, Ron Perlman, Peter Dinklage, Liza Koshy, John DiMaggio, David Sobolov, Michaela Jaé Rodriguez, Cristo Fernández, and Tobe Nwigwe. The screenplay was written by Joby Harold, Darnell Metayer, Josh Peters, Erich Hoeber, and Jon Hoeber.

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Tokubetsuhen Hibike! Euphonium: Ensemble Contest, Kyoto Animation’s theatrical anime adaptation of the “Ensemble Concert” arc from its Sound! Euphonium anime, debuted at #7. This anime, classified as “medium-length,” is longer than a short film but shorter than a full-length feature. It will be screened theatrically and released on Blu-ray Disc. From August 4 to 10, moviegoers will receive a pamphlet containing one of three short stories by original light novel author Ayano Takeda. Tatsuya Ishihara returned to direct the anime at Kyoto Animation, with Taichi Ogawa serving as assistant director and Jukki Hanada writing the script. Shoko Ikeda designed the characters, Kazumi Ikeda was the chief animation director, and Akito Matsuda composed the music. The theme song “Ensemble” is performed by TRUE, with Ayaka Ohashi voicing the character Tsubame Kamaya.

The Super Mario Bros. Movie dropped from #5 to #8 in its 15th weekend at the Japanese box office. Within this time frame, the film earned 57,370,870 yen (about US$401,900), with a cumulative total of 13,534,965,620 yen (approximately US$94.79 million) from selling 9.5 million tickets. In its first three days in Japan, the film sold 1.276 million tickets and earned 1.843 billion yen (about US$13.54 million). It now ranks as the third highest-grossing animated film worldwide, taking into account Disney’s 2019 CG film The Lion King as an animated film, or second if it is not considered. The film opened in the United States and over 60 markets worldwide on April 5, becoming the highest-grossing film of 2023 globally and the highest-earning video game adaptation in history.

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