Sony’s ‘Demon Slayer’ sets anime record in North American box office debut

Sony Pictures’ “Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba The Movie: Infinity Castle” has become the top movie in U.S. and Canadian theaters, setting an opening weekend record for the Japanese anime genre.

The film, about a boy who joins an organization that hunts demons after his little sister is turned into one, brought in $70 million, the division of Sony said Sunday. That topped the previous $31 million record set by “Pokemon: The First Movie — Mewtwo Strikes Back” in 1999.

Box Office Pro had forecast weekend sales of $60 million to $75 million.

The opening underscores the surging global appeal of Japanese anime.

Demon Slayer is based on a Japanese comic book series that has sold over 220 million copies and been adapted for TV, films and video games. The latest picture, distributed by Sony’s Crunchyroll streaming service, is the first of a trilogy. It had already grossed about $280 million worldwide going into the weekend.

Sony demonstrated the broad appeal of its anime business earlier this year with “KPop Demon Hunters,” a film made for Netflix. Within two months of release on the streaming service, the picture became Netflix’s most-watched original film of all time.

Aided by anime’s growing popularity, Sony’s entertainment business — spanning gaming, music, films and TV — has grown to about 60% of the group’s sales.

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