Studio Ghibli
‘The Boy and the Heron’ Dominates U.S. Box Office and Makes Opening Night History
A very strong domestic opening for Hayao Miyazaki and Studio Ghibli’s latest film.
The latest film from Studio Ghibli and Hayao Miyazaki has been released in the United States. The Boy and the Heron” has been a long time coming compared to its release in other regions, but it is meeting or even exceeding the expectations placed on it, accumulating awards and recognitions, as well as standing out at the box office. It grossed $10.7 million in its first weekend and several historical data regarding its premiere:
- ‘The Boy and the Heron’ is Studio Ghibli’s highest-grossing U.S. release in history. Its latest film, ‘The Wind Rises’, grossed $5.2 million.
- It is the first original anime to achieve the top spot at the box office, the third to do so along with ‘Pokémon: The First Movie’ and ‘Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero’.
- It is the first 2D animated film, not based on an existing saga or brand, to win first place at the box office since ‘The Princess and the Frog’ in 2009.
Japan is making a big splash at the US box office this December. ‘Godzilla Minus One’ managed to be the most watched movie in its opening week, quite an achievement for a non-English speaking movie, and it is the first to top the domestic box office in the US since 2004. An achievement that has been continued by ‘The Boy and the Heron’, taking over from the popular Kaiju, the animated film leaves Japan once again at the top of the American box office in a December to remember.
The last great work of Hayao Miyazaki
At the age of 82, Hayao Miyazaki continues to surprise us with the grandeur of his work. His latest movie has left no one indifferent: the Japanese director returns to his essence and shows us a magical world where nothing is impossible.
The review of ‘The Boy and the Heron’ by our colleagues in Spain emphasizes that it is “a deep story full of reflection, but it is not necessary to understand it to enjoy it, and the main objective of the movie is to make us feel it, to become part of it, to be able to touch our deepest ‘I’, and this is where Hayao Miyazaki hits the nail on the head. The aftertaste of the work is enormous, days go by and we continue to think about it, grateful for the enormous gift that the great master of Japanese animation has once again left us”.