Anime movies are continuing to be big business for movie theaters. In recent years, anime films such as Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero, Demon Slayer: Mugen Train, Jujutsu Kaisen 0, and One Piece Film: Red have brought in some major box office numbers in the West. This week saw the release of the long-awaited entry from Studio Ghibli, The Boy and The Heron, in the West and based on projections, the anime movie might just walk away as the biggest movie at the box office this weekend.
According to Deadline, The Boy And The Heron is set to soar to a box office take of over $10 million USD for its opening weekend in North America. Following close behind Ghibli is The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes which is projected to come in second place with a take of around $8.75 million USD. In third, another movie hailing from Japan is projected to continue its winning streak as Godzilla Minus One extended its North American theatrical run following its opening weekend success.
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Ghibli Wins Again
As of today, The Boy And The Heron, or How Do You Live as it is titled in Japan, has made a little over $84 million USD when it comes to the worldwide box office. While this will be a big win for Ghibli, the latest movie from the legendary studio will still have a lot of ground to cover if it is hoping to defeat the production house’s current victory. Spirited Away made a staggering $357 million USD at the box office during its theatrical run, and also won an Academy Award for Best Animated Picture.
The Boy And The Heron is now in theaters. If this is your first time hearing about the Ghibli project, the official description for the film reads as such, “A young boy named Mahito yearning for his mother ventures into a world shared by the living and the dead. There, death comes to an end, and life finds a new beginning. A semi-autobiographical fantasy about life, death, and creation, in tribute to friendship, from the mind of Hayao Miyazaki.”
What do you think of Ghibli’s latest looking to be the number one movie in North America this weekend? Feel free to let us know in the comments or hit me up directly @EVComedy to talk all things comics, anime, and the world of Ghibli.
