US Box Office Showdown: How Soon Until Chainsaw Man Overtakes Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle?

Chainsaw Man just hit theaters with its first feature, and it came out swinging. The real question everyone keeps asking: can Chainsaw Man - The Movie: Reze Arc climb anywhere near Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle at the box office? Short answer: not impossible, but it would need a rocket strapped to its back.

What happened and how big is it?

• Release plan: In Japan, Toho opened Chainsaw Man - The Movie: Reze Arc on September 19, 2025. Outside Japan, Crunchyroll handled it through Sony Pictures Releasing with a staggered rollout. The U.S. date was October 24, 2025.
• Day 1 in the U.S.: $8.5 million on opening day, per Box Office Mojo, with strong word of mouth and solid reviews. It even grabbed the No. 1 spot on Friday.
• Theater count: Chainsaw Man played in 3,003 U.S. locations. For comparison, Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle launched in 3,315.
• International and worldwide: Chainsaw Man has banked over $61.7 million internationally so far, pushing its worldwide total past $70 million.
• Infinity Castle benchmarks: Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle pulled in over $640 million worldwide (via The Numbers), became the highest-grossing Japanese film, and the top international film ever released in the U.S. Its U.S. opening day was a massive $33 million, the biggest domestic debut ever for an anime film.
• Scores snapshot: As of now, IMDb has Chainsaw Man - The Movie: Reze Arc at 8.6 and Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle at 8.5. On Rotten Tomatoes, Chainsaw Man sits at 96% and Demon Slayer at 98%.

Can Chainsaw Man catch Demon Slayer?

Early momentum is good. Chainsaw Man topped Friday and has that upward weekend trajectory you want. MAPPA delivered a slick feature, and audiences seem happy with it. But the gap is real. Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle opened bigger, played in more theaters, and set records that are, frankly, wild. If Chainsaw Man is going to make this a race, it needs a serious surge over the next few weeks.

Part of why the comparison keeps coming up: both films are Sony/Crunchyroll releases outside Japan. Same pipeline, different ceiling. At least based on these first numbers, Demon Slayer is still operating on another tier. Not exactly shocking given how huge that franchise has become, but still worth pointing out.

The bigger picture

The most interesting part here is how normalized it has become to see anime films leading the box office. We are way past the niche phase. If Chainsaw Man keeps legging out, it reinforces that this audience shows up, not just for one mega-franchise, but across multiple series.

Think anything else on the horizon can threaten Demon Slayer's record? I would love to be wrong, but it is going to take a monster to do it.

If you want to catch up: both the Demon Slayer and Chainsaw Man anime are streaming on Crunchyroll.