The Reze Arc Movie Dominates the U.S. Cinema Earnings in First Weekend
Can Sony claim to have repeated their success? Coming after the success of the hit anime Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle, which earned over $600 million worldwide, the new movie Chainsaw Man – The Movie: Reze Arc has surpassed the $100M mark internationally, reaching a international earnings of over $108 million this weekend. The film outperformed the thriller Black Phone 2 ($12.9M) in its second week in movie houses, as well as the film Springsteen: Deliver Me From Nowhere with the talented Jeremy Allen White ($9M).
Notable American and International Earnings
Helmed by director Tatsuya Yoshihara, the film is a immediate sequel of Chainsaw Man’s first season. It earned $18.2M in North America after a powerful $5.2 million Saturday and $4.5M Sunday take. Overseas, the animated by MAPPA film earned nearly $15 million across 46 global regions, resulting in a global sum of $60.4 million through Sony distribution ($43.1M abroad, $18.2 million stateside). Sony has yet to announce its final earnings figure.
Comparisons to Past Successful Anime Films
Anime marketing agency a leading anime marketing group had earlier commented, drawing parallels between the feature's anticipated earnings to the anime hit Jujutsu Kaisen 0, which made $34 million in the North America in 2022 and debuted with a similar $18M in the U.S.. This movie's first weekend aligns with that standard, while its $108 million global gross presently stands slightly below the earlier film's $166.6 million final run. Although it’s unlikely this Chainsaw Man film will match the box office of smash success the record-breaking Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle, this is still a major victory for Sony.
Promotional Campaigns Fuel Performance
The studio and its partner the anime streaming service Crunchyroll have effectively leveraged fan engagement to drive their supremacy at the animated movie market. The movie's promotional efforts began at the Los Angeles Anime Expo in July with a MAPPA panel, exclusive activations, and Pochita photo ops, followed by a major presence at NYCC showcasing exclusive clips, lotteries for fans, and further MAPPA discussions. Additionally, there was an special preview for fans for the public and popular figures too after the concluding day of the convention.
Looking Ahead
2025 stands as a major time for animated films, and for the company, which has one more animated movie premiering in the coming months in the film Jujutsu Kaisen: Execution in the month of November.
