“your name” Director Makoto Shinkai Expresses Amazement at Success of “Demon Slayer” Film

The blockbuster hit maker himself has spoken! Wildly popular and critically acclaimed director Makoto Shinkai, whose 2016 film your name (Kimi no Na wa) is the highest-grossing anime film of all time worldwide, recently commented about the smashing success of Demon Slayer the Movie: Mugen Train! Shinkai tweeted an article about Mugen Train’s record-breaking sales in its first three days, and said,

ひえー…日本の映画興行でこんなことがあり得るんですね。まさに快挙！

The tweet translates as: “Wow! How is this possible at the Japanese box office? A huge accomplishment!”  

It is definitely a huge accomplishment, since the film earned over 4.6 billion yen (USD 43.8 million) in just its first three days! For comparison, other films that earned exceedingly well in its first three days in Japan are Makoto Shinkai’s your name (1.3 billion yen = USD 12.5 million) and Weathering with You (1.6 billion yen = USD 15.2 million), as well as Hollywood film Frozen 2 (USD 18.2 million). Looking at these numbers, it’s clear that Demon Slayer easily blew away all competition.

Some are saying that Mugen Train is well on its way to beat your name’s local and even worldwide box-office record given that it has yet to premiere worldwide, so we’ll all have to see! As it is, we’re all excited to watch the film as soon as it hits theaters outside Japan!

The film opened in Japan last October 16, with North American releases set for early 2021.

The manga’s story is described by Anime News Network as such:

“Since ancient times, rumors have abounded of man-eating demons lurking in the woods. Because of this, the local townsfolk never venture outside at night. Legend has it that a demon slayer also roams the night, hunting down these bloodthirsty demons. For young Tanjiro, these rumors will soon to become his harsh reality. Ever since the death of his father, Tanjiro has taken it upon himself to support his family. Although their lives may be hardened by tragedy, they’ve found happiness. But that ephemeral warmth is shattered one day when Tanjiro finds his family slaughtered and the lone survivor, his sister Nezuko, turned into a demon. To his surprise, however, Nezuko still shows signs of human emotion and thought. Thus begins Tanjiro’s request to fight demons and turn his sister human again.”

Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba is a shonen manga series written by Koyoharu Gotoge. It was first published in February 2016 in Weekly Shonen Jump and ended last May. The manga’s English license is currently held by Viz Media.

Source: Crunchyroll News