As if fans weren’t eager to watch Jujutsu Kaisen 0 already, the film, which was released exclusively in Japanese theaters on Dec. 24 (to the dismay of international fans), is already breaking records in its first 11 days at the box office.
According to Toho, the film has sold 4.3 million tickets and earned 5,873,064,900 yen (about $50 million) at the box office. Anime News Network reports the film earned 2,694,128,150 yen in just the first three days, making it the second-biggest opening in the market’s box office history.
According to Crunchyroll, Jujutsu Kaisen 0 is the eighth film to break the 5 million yen mark in under two weeks. It’s in the company of Spirited Away, Howl’s Moving Castle, Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, The Matrix Reloaded, and Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba – The Movie: Mugen Train. And Jujutsu Kaisen 0 is also faring better than the Japanese box office’s highest-grossing film in 2021, Evangelion: 3.0+1.0 Thrice Upon A Time. In its first 14 days, Thrice Upon A Time earned 4,934,996,800 yen and would eventually reach 10.22 billion yen (just over $90 million) worldwide. While it was distributed internationally, it did not see a theatrical release to contribute to box office numbers in the US.
The only comparable release is 2020’s record-shattering film Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba – The Movie: Mugen Train. That film broke box office records in Japan and worldwide and comfortably holds the title of highest-grossing anime film worldwide at over $500 million.
The website for Jujutsu Kaisen 0 celebrated its milestone with a new visual of Yuta Otobon.
The film is an adaption of mangaka Gege Akutami’s Tokyo Metropolitan Curse Technical School, renamed Jujutsu Kaisen 0 after the success of the sequel manga Jujutsu Kaisen. The cast and crew of the Jujutsu Kaisen anime adaptation directed by Sunghoo Park at studio MAPPA returned to produce the film.
Jujutsu Kaisen is streaming on Crunchyroll. Sadly, there is currently no word on when Jujutsu Kaisen 0 the Movie will release in North America.