Chainsaw Man: Reze Arc Falls Short of Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle — Yet Its Japan Box Office Proves Anime Movies Are Unstoppable
The anime film storms into US cinemas this October — mark your calendars.
Anime movies are eating at the box office right now. Demon Slayer is out there rewriting record books, and hot on its heels is Chainsaw Man, which just launched its first feature in Japan and is already pulling real numbers.
Chainsaw Man goes big-screen (for real, not a recap)
The movie is officially called "Chainsaw Man - The Movie: Reze Arc," and unlike those compilation edits you sometimes get between seasons (looking at you, "Jujutsu Kaisen: Hidden Inventory / Premature Death"), this is actual new story. It adapts the Reze arc of Tatsuki Fujimoto's manga as a straight continuation from season 1. Denji is now rolling with Public Safety’s Special Division 4, and after a rain-soaked post-Makima date detour, he meets Reze, a seemingly normal girl working at a cafe. Emphasis on 'seemingly.' Fans know this arc is a big one.
Opening day haul, and where this could be headed
Japan showed up. On its first day in theaters (Friday), the film grossed over 420 million yen, which is roughly $2.8 million. Distributor TOHO is projecting a total run around 5 billion yen, or about $34 million. That is not Demon Slayer territory, but it is not supposed to be. For context, "Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle" just sprinted past $555 million to become the highest-grossing anime movie ever. Different scale, same takeaway: anime films are firmly a theatrical thing now.
Why a movie and not season 2?
MAPPA didn’t roll this out as a TV season because they wanted the arc to hit the broadest possible audience in one shot. MAPPA president Manabu Ohtsuka framed it as a strategic move rather than a cash grab, which is a little bit of inside baseball you do not always hear out loud.
"The revenue aspect wasn't really a factor at all. It's trying to deliver the product to as many people as possible."
He also said that from a business standpoint, putting Reze on the big screen was simply the way to maximize reach. Translation: if you want to grow the fanbase, make it an event.
- Opening day (Japan): 420+ million yen (~$2.8M)
- Projected total (TOHO): ~5 billion yen (~$34M)
- Not a compilation: this is a proper Reze Arc adaptation following season 1
- Demon Slayer context: "Infinity Castle" just topped $555M, now the all-time anime box office leader
- Release dates: US on October 24; UK on October 29
Bottom line: "Chainsaw Man - The Movie: Reze Arc" is the next chapter, not homework, and it is already connecting in Japan. The rest of us get our turn in October.