Sony and Crunchyroll’s Chainsaw Man – The Movie: Reze Arc is poised to finish first at the domestic box office this weekend off strong advance demand and premium-format play, according to industry tracking, marking another theatrical win for an anime feature in the Halloween corridor. Forecasts as of Saturday put the film in the low-teens range for its U.S. debut, enough to edge out holdovers and new wide releases while capitalizing on a fervent fan base built by the manga and TV series.
The film enters North America with significant momentum from overseas runs that began in September. Ticketing data and territory updates show the feature already amassing a sizable international haul prior to its U.S. rollout, with reported grosses surpassing $60 million across early markets and continuing to expand through additional openings. The brand’s appeal in Japan and South Korea translated into repeat business and strong word of mouth, giving distributors a platform to scale premium formats such as IMAX, 4DX and Dolby Cinema for the domestic launch.
Chainsaw Man – The Movie: Reze Arc adapts a pivotal storyline from the source material and arrives amid a broader pattern of anime titles surfacing near the top of weekend charts when scheduled against mid-budget live-action fare. Analysts say the playbook relies on concentrated showtimes, eventized marketing, and fan-driven pre-sales that front-load revenue into opening frames, a strategy that can lift rankings even with fewer theaters than studio tentpoles. Early weekend reads indicate that effect is in play here, with domestic estimates firming as walk-up traffic combines with pre-purchased tickets.
Beyond domestic jockeying, the release underscores how anime features are increasingly contributing to the yearly global chart. Listings tracking 2025 grosses place Reze Arc within striking distance of several mid-tier live-action releases despite a staggered rollout, reflecting how targeted windows and platform partnerships can extend theatrical life for franchise titles. With additional territories to come and North American word-of-mouth just beginning, the film’s weekend crown would punctuate a month in which genre entries have repeatedly disrupted conventional box office rankings.
