Japan’s leading film distributor and exhibitor Toho Tuesday announced that it is upping the official box office total of the 2001 Miyazaki Hayao animation “Spirited Away” by $8.5 million to $304 million, the all-time record for any film in the Japanese market. The new figure includes revival screenings of the film this year in the Toho chain after the pandemic led to the postponement of dozens of new releases.
This means that the current number two, the action animation “Demon Slayer the Movie: Mugen Train” that Toho is co-distributing with Aniplex, will have a bit farther to go to pass Japan’s all-time chart leader. As of Monday, it had earned $291 million and was widely expected to overtake “Spirited Away” in total box office by next week.
Originally released in July, 2001, “Spirited Away” was re-released by Toho on June 26, 2020 on 372 screens, together with three other classics from Miyazaki and his Studio Ghibli animation house. It played until August. In total the four films, including “Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind” (1984), “Princess Mononoke” (1997), and “Tales from Earthsea” (2006), earned $25 million on re-release.
After opening on Oct. 16 on 403 screens, including 38 IMAX screens, “Demon Slayer” has reached its current total in just 59 days on release. Starting from Dec. 26 it will get a further boost, playing on 82 MX4D and 4DX screens across the country.