The Boy and the Heron Makes History After Topping U.S. Box Office

It seems the U.S. box office cannot get enough of Japanese cinema right now. In the wake of a takeover by Godzilla Minus One, the domestic box office is now paying homage to a different film from Japan. Amid its big opening weekend, The Boy and the Heron by Studio Ghibli has topped the U.S. box office, and it is making history with the big win.

For those unaware, Studio Ghibli’s Hayao Miyazaki welcomed his latest film to America this past weekend. The Boy and the Heron hit theaters across the United States with help from GKIDS. The debut pushed The Boy and the Heron to first place at the domestic box office this weekend as Miyazaki’s film grossed nearly $13 million USD.

And as for what rounded out the top five films? Well, The Boy and the Heron beat out the latest Hunger Games film; The prequel earned just under $10 million at the box office this weekend. Godzilla Minus One took third place with $8.3 million ahead of Trolls 3. Finally, Wish took fifth place with $5.3 million, so animation had quite the showing at the domestic box office this weekend.

Clearly, The Boy and the Heron brought a lot of sales, and it secured some records for its work. After all, the Miyazaki film now has holds the biggest three-day weekend for an original anime to date domestically; This record went to The Secret World of Arrietty before now. The Boy and the Heron also had one of the biggest three-day opening weekend of any anime domestically, knocking Dragon Ball Super: Broly out of the top spot. You can check out the full list of biggest anime openings below for more context:

1. Pokemon: The First Movie 
   
2. Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba – Mugen Train
   
3. Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero
   
4. Pokemon the Movie 2000
   
5. Jujutsu Kaisen 0
   
6. The Boy and the Heron
   
7. Dragon Ball Super: Broly
   
8. Yu-Gi-Oh: The Movie
   
9. One Piece Film: Red
   
10. Pokemon 3 the Movie
    

Obviously, all eyes will be on The Boy and the Heron as its box office run continues. The film marks the first Miyazaki movie to debut at number one domestically upon launch. It seems the fervor for Studio Ghibli is bigger than ever, so The Boy and the Heron is filling a hunger many didn’t know they had. So if you have not seen The Boy and the Heron just yet, you can find local screenings near you right now. GKIDS is screening the anime’s subbed and English dubbed versions, so be sure to secure tickets for the showing you prefer. 

What do you think about these latest box office records? Let us know what you think in the comments below as well as on Twitter and Instagram. You can also hit me up @MeganPetersCB to share your take!