One Piece Film: Red debuts at number one in Japan with huge box office haul

The release of One Piece Film: Red, the newest film of the hit anime franchise, has been relatively smooth sailing; in other words, it’s number one in Japan.

One Piece has always been incredibly popular. The 24-year-old ongoing manga by Eiichiro Oda, which follows the sea-sailing adventures of the stretchy superpowered Monkey D. Luffy as he attempts to become the Pirate King, even broke a Guinness World Record recently for the number of copies it has in circulation.

The anime is equally as influential, having begun in 1999, and still going strong 1,000 episodes later. There’s even a live-action adaptation of the anime coming to Netflix soon.

The series has also created many of its own anime films, with the most recent one, One Piece Film: Red, having opened in Japan this week. And from the looks of the box office, it appears to be a very successful opening.

One Piece Film: Red opens at number one in Japan

The film, which opened in IMAX theatres in Japan, has managed to rank top of the box office during its opening weekend. The film sold 1.58 million tickets and earned 2.254 billion yen – around $16.7 million – in its first two days.

This new One Piece film is a marked improvement from its predecessor in terms of profit, earning 78% more in its first two days than the 2019 film One Piece: Stampede did in its first three – which may be the result of opening on a Friday as opposed to Red’s Saturday.

What is One Piece Film: Red about?

The name “Red” suggests what the film is about, which is “Red-Hair” Shanks, the pirate that inspires Luffy to try and become the Pirate King. The film also centres on a new character named Uta, who is Shanks’ daughter.

The film is directed by Goro Taniguchi, of Code Geass fame, and Tsutomu Kuroiwa, who has written other One Piece anime films, has also penned this script. Eiichiro Oda, the original manga creator himself, served as executive producer.

When and where can I watch One Piece Film: Red?

If you don’t live in Japan, Crunchyroll is planning to theatrically screen the film in the US, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand this fall.

The screenings will be available both subbed and dubbed.