The Japanese box office continues to be dominated by anime films, with the latest Detective Conan movie maintaining its stronghold at number one. Meanwhile, a new film from the Utano Princesama franchise has made its debut in the top five. Here’s a closer look at the recent box office performance of these films:
Detective Conan’s Reign Continues
Detective Conan: One-Eyed Flashback, the 28th film in the Detective Conan (Case Closed) franchise, has remained at the top of the Japanese box office for four straight weekends. In its fourth weekend (May 9-11), the film earned 662 million yen (about US$4.46 million) on 444,000 admissions. While this was a 53.5% drop from the previous weekend, it was still enough to keep it in the top spot.
A Record-Breaking Opening
The film initially opened on April 18, 2025, and had a record-breaking opening weekend for the franchise, earning 3,438,626,700 yen (about US$24.15 million) and selling 2,314,690 tickets in its first three days. This surpassed the previous record set by Detective Conan: The Million-Dollar Pentagram, which earned $23.5 million in its opening weekend in April 2024. One-Eyed Flashback opened on 522 screens, the widest release in the franchise’s history.
Cumulative Success
As of May 13, 2025, after 23 days of release, Detective Conan: One-Eyed Flashback has grossed a cumulative total of 11.3 billion yen (about US$76.21 million) on 7.86 million admissions. This makes it the 36th top-grossing film in Japan’s box office ranking of all time, surpassing The Matrix Reloaded (2003) and Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2005). As of May 15, 2025, the film has sold a total of 7.86 million tickets for a cumulative total of 11,365,940,300 yen (approximately US$77.79 million).
About Detective Conan: One-Eyed Flashback
Detective Conan: One-Eyed Flashback is set in the snowy mountains of Nagano Prefecture and revolves around a series of mysterious events and murders. The film features real-life locations, a common element in Conan films that often become tourist spots for fans. Katsuya Shigehara, who previously worked on several Conan films as a unit director and key animator, directed the film. The theme song, “Twilight!!!” is performed by King Gnu.
The Detective Conan series centers on a teenage detective named Shinichi Kudo who is transformed into a child after being forced to take a mysterious drug. He continues to solve mysteries under the alias Conan Edogawa. Gosho Aoyama launched the manga in 1994, and it is still ongoing. The television anime adaptation has aired over 1,100 episodes.
A Long-Running Success Story
The Detective Conan anime films have a long history of box office success in Japan. The previous film, Detective Conan: The Million-Dollar Pentagram, became the highest-grossing entry in the franchise, earning over 15.8 billion yen (about US$110.9 million) in 2024. The film series has now sold over 100 million tickets, making it the third franchise in Japan to reach this milestone.
Utano Princesama’s Newest Hit
Uta no Prince-sama The Movie: TABOO NIGHT XXXX, the latest film in the Uta no Prince-sama anime franchise, debuted at number four at the Japanese box office. The film opened in 135 theaters on May 9, 2025, and earned 189 million yen (about US$1.27 million) from 92,000 ticket sales in its first three days.
A Concert Film Experience
TABOO NIGHT XXXX is the third concert film in the Uta no Prince-sama franchise. The film features the QUARTET NIGHT unit. The title “XXXX” is pronounced “kisses”.
Previous Uta no Prince-sama Films
The Uta no Prince-sama franchise has a history of successful concert films. The first film, Uta no Prince-sama The Movie: Maji LOVE Kingdom, released in June 2019, earned 1.82 billion yen (about US$12.70 million). The second film, Uta no Prince-sama The Movie: Maji LOVE ST☆RISH TOUR, released in September 2022, surpassed the first film’s box office gross, earning 2.29 billion yen (about US$16 million).
About Uta no Prince-sama
Uta no Prince-sama is a multimedia franchise that includes video games, anime, manga, and music. The franchise revolves around a group of male idols and their journey to stardom.
Encore Screenings
To celebrate the release of TABOO NIGHT XXXX, previous Uta no Prince-sama films, Uta no Prince Sama Maji Love Kingdom and Utano☆Princesama Maji LOVE ST☆RISH Tours, had special encore screenings in theaters for three weeks, starting on March 7, 2025.
Other Notable Films
Several other films have also performed well at the Japanese box office in 2025:
- Doraemon the Movie: Nobita’s Art World Tales has earned $30 million (¥4.2 billion), making it Japan’s highest-grossing film of 2025 to date.
- Wicked has earned $21.4 million (¥3 billion), making it Japan’s highest-grossing non-domestic film of the year to date.
The Japanese box office continues to be a dynamic and competitive market, with anime films leading the way in 2025. Detective Conan: One-Eyed Flashback‘s continued success and the debut of Uta no Prince-sama The Movie: TABOO NIGHT XXXX demonstrate the enduring popularity of these franchises.
