New Gundam Movie Continues To Soar At The Box Office

Mobile Suit Gundam has hit some big strides in recent years, with one of its biggest silver screen arrivals once again taking us into the Gundam SEED universe. Mobile Suit Gundam SEED Freedom garnered quite a bit in terms of box office receipts but it might have some competition. Gundam GQuuuuuux doesn’t just have the most complicated name of any story under the Mobile Suit umbrella, but it was brought to life by none other than Hideaki Anno, the man responsible for Neon Genesis Evangelion and the Shin Universe. Hitting its second weekend in theaters, the compilation film is still soaring high despite some big challengers to the throne.

Much like the story of NERV, Anno is once again focusing on teenage mech pilots who find themselves in a sticky situation. Of course, the Gundam pilots won’t be fighting against Angels as the EVA pilots had in his previous series, but they have their own set of problems. Taking elements from past series like The Witch From Mercury and G Gundam, the new story is one that will see protagonist Amate Yuzuriha entering in underground dueling sport known as “Clan Battles.” Without diving into spoiler territory, the setting of this new series is one that might throw many long time mech fans for a loop.

[RELATED: One of Gundam’s Most Popular Anime is Not That Deep (But Is Still Worth Watching)]

Gundam Stays Number One

In its second weekend, Gundam GQuuuuuux -Beginning- has once again been the number one film at the box office in Japan. The mech movie was even able to overtake the recent live-action anime adaptation of Under Ninja, along with Cells At Work. Representing the anime industry, the recent Hatsune Miku anime film, Project Seikai The Movie: The Broken World and The Miku Who Can’t Sing) also was in the top ten.

In terms of box office receipts, the Gundam movie has hit over $9 million USD in ticket sales, meaning that it will need to play some catch-up if it wants to compete with Gundam SEED Freedom’s previous run. For those in the West waiting to see this compilation film, fear not as GQuuuuuux will hit North American theaters on February 28th next month. The television series has yet to confirm a specific release date for its first episode but it is expected to arrive later in 2025.

Gundam’s Bright Future

Hideaki Anno’s new series is far from the only mech project on the horizon. To celebrate both its forty-fifth and upcoming fiftieth anniversary, the Gundam franchise has touted that it has several anime projects in the works. A recent reveal was that the long-awaited sequel to Mobile Suit Gundam: Hathaway’s Flash was still in development and might release as soon as this year according to Bandai Namco. On the live-action front, Netflix is still working on a live-action movie for the franchise, hot on the heels of One Piece and Avatar: The Last Airbender’s success. While many projects remain a mystery, Gundam’s popularity is one thing that is certain.

Want to stay in the loop on the world of Gundam? Follow along with Team Anime on ComicBook.com for the latest updates on the anime mechs and hit me up directly @EVComedy to talk all things comics and anime.

Via Crunchyroll