A hotly anticipated anime release went Super Saiyan on the North American box office this week. Dragon Ball Super: Broly, from Funimation Films (the theatrical division of Sony Pictures Television’s Funimation), opened as the #1 movie in the U.S. with $7+ million box office on its first day.
Opening on 1,440 screens including 180 IMAX and Cinemark XD premium large format screens, Dragon Ball Super: Broly also took 1st place among the Top 10 movies with a $5,695 per screen average. Based on yesterday’s box office, the 20th Dragon Ball feature film is the biggest opening for an event film ever as well as the 5th highest earning anime theatrical opening of all time. The film’s $7M+ box office also sets a new opening day record for Funimation Films. The previous record was $1.97M set in 2015 by Dragon Ball Z: Resurrection ‘F’, the 19th Dragon Ball film.
“Both anime and mainstream audience response to Dragon Ball Super: Broly has been overwhelmingly positive. We anticipated a strong opening, but we’re thrilled that the box office exceeded even the high end of our estimate,” said Gen Fukunaga, CEO and President of Funimation. “We’re thrilled to hear that countless fans have or plan to watch the film multiple times. Fans are at the core of our strategy for this film. From the theatrical campaign and fan engagement events to our theatrical footprint and IMAX / Cinemark XD opening day presentation, our goal has been to make Dragon Ball Super: Broly available to as many fans as possible through the widest array of touchpoints. This strategy has paid off.”
Dragon Ball Super: Broly follows the events of the hit anime series Dragon Ball Super, the first new Dragon Ball storyline from original creator Akira Toriyama in more than 18 years. Since premiering in summer 2015, Dragon Ball Super has propelled the popularity of the franchise globally – with both lifelong fans and a whole new generation of children and teens.
Learn more at www.dragonballsuperofficial.com.
