NEW YORK (AP) 鈥� For the first time in Hayao Miyazaki's decades-spanning career, the 82-year-old Japanese anime master is No. 1 at the North American box office. Miyazaki's latest enchantment, debuted with $12.8 million, according to studio estimates.
鈥淭he Boy and the Heron,鈥� the long-awaited animated fantasy from the director of 鈥淪pirited Away,鈥� 鈥淢y Neighbor Totoro鈥� and other cherished anime classics, is only the third anime to ever top the box office in U.S. and Canadian theaters, and the first original anime to do so. The film, which is playing in both subtitled and dubbed versions, is also the first fully foreign production to land atop the domestic box office this year.
Though Miyazaki's movies have often been enormous hits in Japan and Asia, they've traditionally made less of a mark in North American cinemas. The director's previous best performer was his last movie, 2013's which grossed $5.2 million in its entire domestic run.
鈥淚t's really a resounding statement for what animation can be," said Eric Beckman, founder and chief executive of GKIDS, the North American distributor for Studio Ghibli films. "American audiences have been ready for a lot more than what they've been getting, and I think this really points to that direction.鈥�
鈥淭he Boy and the Heron" for years was expected to be Miyazaki's swan song. But just as it was making its premiere at the in September, Junichi Nishioka, Studio Ghibli vice president, said the previously retired Miyazaki has begun
鈥淭he Boy and the Heron,鈥� has been hailed as films of the year. The film, featuring an English dub voice cast including Robert Pattinson, Christian Bale, Dave Bautista and Mark Hamill, follows a boy who, after her mother perishes in World War II bombing, is led by a mysterious heron to a portal that takes him to a fantastical realm. In Japan, its title translates to 鈥淗ow Do You Live?鈥�
鈥淭he Boy and the Heron鈥� earlier collected $56 million in Japan despite zero promotion. Studio Ghibli opted to release the film without production stills, trailers, ads or billboards.
The U.S. and Canadian release included conventional advertising but was similarly handled with the care of something truly special as a Miyazaki movie. Throughout this year, all 10 of Miyazaki's films with Ghibli were rereleased in theaters by GKIDS, which was founded in 2008 as way to bring ambitious animation to wider audiences.
鈥淲orking on a Hayao Miyazaki film is a huge honor but also kind of terrifying,鈥� Beckman said. 鈥淲e鈥檙e really just trying to do justice to the film."
鈥淩enaissance: A Film by Beyonc茅,鈥� dropped steeply in its second weekend. The concert film, the second pop star release distributed by AMC Theatres collected $5 million in its second weekend, a decline of 76% from its $21 million opening.
That allowed Lionsgate's still-going-strong to take second place, with an estimated $9.4 million in its fourth weekend of release. The 鈥淗unger Games鈥� prequel has a domestic haul of $135.7 million.
鈥淭he Boy and the Heron鈥� wasn't the only Japanese film that ranked among the top movies in theaters over the weekend. 鈥淕odzilla Minus One" followed up its stellar debut last weekend with $8.3 million for Toho Studios. Takashi Yamazaki's acclaimed kaiju movie dipped just 27% in its second weekend of release, bringing its total to $25 million.
Several potential awards contenders got off to strong starts in limited release. Yorgos Lanthimos' warped fantasy starring Emma Stone, opened with $644,000 from nine theaters in New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Austin, Texas. 鈥淧oor Things鈥� expands in more theaters next week.
played an Oscar-qualifying run in two theaters in New York and Los Angeles with a per screen average of $58,532 for Neon. It stars Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor as the author Isabel Wilkerson while she investigates race and inequality for her book 鈥淐aste: The Origins of Our Discontents." 鈥淥rigin鈥� opens wide Jan. 19.
one of the holiday season鈥檚 most anticipated releases, kicked off its overseas run with $43.2 million from 37 international markets. The film, starring Timoth茅e Chalamet and directed by 鈥淧addington鈥� filmmaker Paul King, is expected to lead U.S. and Canada ticket sales next weekend.
Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Comscore. Final domestic figures will be released Monday.
1. 鈥淭he Boy and the Heron,鈥� $12.8 million.
2. 鈥淭he Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes,鈥� $9.4 million.
3. 鈥淕odzilla Minus One,鈥� $8.3 million.
4. 鈥淭rolls Band Together,鈥� $6.2 million.
5. 鈥淲ish,鈥� $5.3 million.
6. 鈥淩enaissance, A Film by Beyonc茅,鈥� $5 million.
7. 鈥淣apoleon,鈥� $4.2 million.
8. 鈥淲aitress: The Musical,鈥� $3.2 million.
9. 鈥淎nimal,鈥� $2.3 million.
10. 鈥淭he Shift,鈥� $2.2 million.
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Jake Coyle, The Associated Press
