The latest films from two global hitmakers continue to hit milestones at the box office. As of this weekend, Studio Ghibli’s The Boy and the Heron has risen up the ranks of the all-time biggest anime releases in the U.S., while Illumination’s Migration is feathering its nest with international and domestic gains.
According to NorAm distributor GKIDS, The Boy and the Heron is now the third-highest-grossing anime feature ever released in the U.S., soaring past Pokémon: The Movie 2000 ($43.7 million) — the franchise’s second feature, released Stateside in 2000 — with a domestic total of $44.2M, boosted by $660.9K across 610 screens in its eighth week of domestic release. Still in the lead are Pokémon: The First Movie – Mewtwo Strikes Back (1999, $85.7M) and Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba – The Movie: Mugen Train (2021, $49.5M).
Worldwide, the critically acclaimed new opus from Oscar winner Hayao Miyazaki (Spirited Away) has earned a total of $163.3M. The film has set several records in territories around the globe.
Migration, an original duck tale from French director Benjamin Renner (Ernest & Celestine) and screenwriter Mike White (creator of White Lotus), hovered in the weekend’s domestic Top Five, coming in No. 4 with an additional $5.2M, hitting a milestone with a NorAm cumulative take of $101.25M for Universal Pictures in its fifth frame in 2,962 theaters. Despite opening at No.3/No. 4 over Christmas, the family comedy adventure has held steady into the new year, even gaining locations (+78) and box office (+36.6%) over the New Years long weekend. This weekend saw the flock falter by just -5.7% and down 132 screens.
Internationally, Migration has hit another milestone, reaching a global total of $206.14M.
Comparing to previous Illumination releases, the Nintendo IP blockbuster The Super Mario Bros. Movie — the biggest animated release of 2023 ($574.9M domestic/$1.36B worldwide) and second-highest-grossing movie in North America behind Barbie — surpassed the 100 million-dollar mark in NorAm in just three days of release. The franchise prequel Minions: The Rise of Gru, which opened Stateside in 2022 following COVID-induced delays, accomplished the same feat, going on to totals of $370.27M domestic/$940.2M worldwide. The studio’s last original launch, the first Sing movie in 2016, passed $100M in its second weekend, having opened over Christmas.
Bringing an artistic, Eastern European indie option for adult audiences to the marquee, The Peasants by DK and Hugh Welchman (Loving Vincent) made its theatrical debut in New York, grossing $15.2K from a single screen engagement. Added to takes from a previous Oscar-qualifying run, the paint-animated film warms up for a wider U.S. release through Sony Pictures Classics with a domestic total of $26.7K.
Produced by BreakThru Films (Poland), DigitalKraft (Serbia) and Art Shot (Lithuania), The Peasants will open in Los Angeles at the Laemmle Royal on February 2 before rolling out nationwide. The pic’s worldwide box office stands at $9.7M.
The weekend’s Top 5 were the new Jason Statham actioner The Beekeeper ($7.4M, MGM), Paramount’s Mean Girls reboot ($7.29M), Roald Dahl prequel Wonka ($5.9, Warner Bros.), Migration, romcom Anyone But You ($4.8M, Columbia Pictures). Yorgos Lanthimos’ reimagining of Frankenstein, Poor Things, squeaked in at No. 6 ($3M, Searchlight) after eight weeks, while the latest DC outing Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom hit No. 8 ($2.8M, WB) and Toho’s critically acclaimed kaiju pic Godzilla Minus One came in at No. 9 in its ninth week of release ($2.6M).
[Sources: Deadline, BoxOfficeMojo]
