‘The Boy And The Heron’ Becomes First Original 2D Animated Film To Top The U.S. Box Office Since 2009’s ‘The Princess And The Frog’

Hayao Miyazaki’s The Boy and the Heron opened in first place at the U.S. box office over the weekend, becoming the first original 2d animated feature to do so since Disney’s The Princess and the Frog in 2009.

Studio Ghibli’s The Boy and the Heron, distributed in just over 2,200 U.S. theaters by GKIDS, grossed $12.97 million over its debut frame, including Thursday previews. Its three-day total (Friday-Sunday) was $10.4 million. Either figure makes it the largest U.S. debut ever for both director and studio.

The Boy and the Heron is also now distributor GKID’s highest-grossing release ever, having already passed Makoto Shinkai’s Weathering with You, which grossed $7.8 million run when it was released by the company in 486 theaters in 2020.

At $12.97 million, The Boy and the Heron is the 12th-highest-grossing anime title in U.S. box office history, ahead of One Piece Film: Red’s $12.78 million. The film is also on the road to becoming Miyazaki’s highest-grossing film in the territory. Ponyo currently holds that distinction, with $15.1 million grossed over its full theatrical run in 2009.

Some of The Boy and the Heron’s most noteworthy milestones from the past weekend include:

• Miyazaki’s first-ever no. 1 debut and the first time that any of his films has topped the U.S. box office.
• The first original anime title ever to top the U.S. box office, and only the fourth-ever anime title to take the top spot, alongside Pokémon: The First Movie, Demon Slayer: Mugen Train, and Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero.
• The only fully-foreign production to take the top spot at the U.S. box office in 2023, and the first since fellow Japanese feature Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero achieved the feat in August 2022.
• The fourth animated title to top the U.S. box office in 2023, after The Super Mario Bros. Movie, Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, and PAW Patrol: The Mighty Movie.

The Boy and the Heron has now also cracked the global top 10 for animated features this year. According to Comscore, the film’s currently worldwide cume is estimated at $114.2 million, which puts it just over fellow anime title Detective Conan: Black Iron Submarine’s $106.5 million.

Dreamworks’ Trolls Band Together and Disney’s Wish both cracked the weekend’s top five at the domestic box office. Trolls had a slim drop of just 20.8% from the previous week and added $6.2 million, good for fourth over the weekend, to its domestic total, which now sits at $83 million. Wish managed to pull in $5.3 million over the weekend, good for fifth, bringing its three-week domestic total up to $49.4 million.