The wildly anticipated anime sequel Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba – The Movie: Infinity Castle is already making box-office history in Japan.
The anime epic opened with $11.1 million (¥1.65 billion) from 1.16 million admissions on Friday — a new single-day record for Japan. From Friday to Sunday, the film totalled $37.3 million, but including Monday — a national holiday in Japan — it soared to $49.4 million. Either way, the performance represents a new opening-weekend record in the country.
The film also posted historic results for Imax in the country. Playing on just 59 premium screens, Infinity Castle generated $3 million over the standard Friday–Sunday weekend, and $3.5 million when including Monday’s Marine Day holiday. The result marks the format’s biggest opening frame ever in the market, with a per-screen average of approximately $48,000.
The blockbuster debut echoes the stunning performance of 2020’s Demon Slayer: Mugen Train, which became Japan’s all-time top-grossing film — amid the challenges of the pandemic — with a record-breaking total of over $365 million (¥40 billion). Infinity Castle’s three-day opening gross came in approximately 19 percent ahead of Mugen Train’s equivalent debut, suggesting the latest installment could be on course for another historic run, depending on word of mouth and staying power.
Directed by Haruo Sotozaki and produced by acclaimed animation studio ufotable, Infinity Castle adapts the final arc of Koyoharu Gotouge’s best-selling manga series. Voice cast regulars Natsuki Hanae (Tanjiro), Akari Kitō (Nezuko), Hiro Shimono (Zenitsu), and Yoshitsugu Matsuoka (Inosuke) return as the Demon Slayer Corps embarks on a climactic assault against the demon king Muzan Kibutsuji. The film was co-financed by Aniplex, a subsidiary of Sony Group. International distribution is set to begin Sept. 12 via Toho, Aniplex, and Crunchyroll, with Imax releases planned in over 40 territories worldwide.
The record-setting performance comes as Japan’s film industry continues to tilt heavily toward local content — particularly animation. Japanese films earned $1.01 billion (¥155.8 billion) in 2024, capturing approximately 75 percent of the market, while foreign films slumped to $329 million (¥51.2 billion) amid softness from major Hollywood tentpoles. Anime accounted for more than half of all ticket sales, thanks to the sustained popularity of long-running domestic franchises such as Detective Conan and Haikyu!!. The overseas market for anime, meanwhile, continues to surge.
Imax, virtually alone among North American theatrical players, is reaping the rewards of this shift. The company has been expanding its local presence through new site deals with Japanese exhibitors and increased collaboration with studios and distributors on Imax releases of major anime titles.