Box Office Report: Slay!

Anime is a safe bet at the box office. Usually, it receives a more limited release, but the fans turn out in droves regardless, and in quieter weekends, these titles can take the top spot. But I’m not sure most box office experts saw this coming.

Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba - Infinity Castle is the latest film connected to the Demon Slayer franchise. It’s about a teenage boy who joins the Slayer Corps after his family is slaughtered by demons and his sister is turned into one. This thing is huge. It’s one of the biggest-selling manga series ever written, and in only a decade, it’s grown into one of the highest-grossing media franchises of all time. In Japan, this new movie has already become both the highest-grossing film of 2025 there and the fourth highest-grossing Japanese film worldwide. It’s about to take over Spirited Away and could take the top spot in no time. That number one title, by the way? The other Demon Slayer film.

So, how did it do in the US? It earned $70 million. To put that in perspective, the second highest-grossing movie of the past weekend, The Conjuring: Last Rites, made $26.1 million. This is megastar stuff. Did Sony see it coming? See, there is life in theaters. Surely, between this and the brief cinematic run of Kpop Demon Hunters, this should signal a shift for Hollywood? Ha, if only.

Demon Slayer was dominant over competition old and new. The next highest-earning movie of the weekend was Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale. Like the British upper classes, it will never die. But it was a softer success than its predecessors, landing at number three with $18.1 million. Have fans moved onto The Gilded Age, or did Maggie Smith’s absence put devotees off?

Behind that at number four is The Long Walk, adapted from the Stephen King book, with $11.5 million. Reviews were very good, and its reported $20 million budget means it’ll be fine in a few weeks.

If you wanted cartoons but not demons, you had the 30th anniversary re-release of Pixar’s Toy Story to enjoy. It did okay, with a $3.5 million gross from 2,375 locations. Another anniversary re-release, The Sound of Music, grossed $1,486,231 for its 60th birthday.

Things weren’t so good for Spinal Tap II: The End Continues. Not all legacy sequels are created equally, and making a not-good follow-up to one of the greatest comedies ever filmed is bound to leave fans skeptical. That’s clear in the numbers: $1,674,926 from 1,920 cinemas. Ouch.

In limited release news: historical drama The History of Sound, starring Josh O’Connor and Paul Mescal, took in $85,786 from four places; and Bang Bang, starring Tim Blake Nelson, punched up $12,000 from four places.

This coming week sees the release of the romantic drama A Big Bold Beautiful Journey, and the football horror Him.

You can check out the rest of the weekend box office numbers here.