Barely released in cinemas, the film Haikyu!! already explodes the box office

The anime Haikyu!! has just shaken up the Japanese box office, propelling itself to the same level as the biggest franchises: a good sign for those hoping for a release in France?

After four seasons, Haikyu!! originally stopped in 2020. The volleyball anime focuses on high school students Shoyo Hinata and Tobio Kageyama, who want to become professional players. And the formula hit home, charming fans for several years as the two friends worked to achieve a common goal.

Following the season 4 finale of Haikyu!!, two animated films were announced. The first, Haikyu!! the Movie: Decisive Battle at the Garbage Dump, began broadcasting in Japan on February 16, 2024, and it immediately showed what it was capable of.

Indeed, the film has just risen to the same level as the biggest anime franchises in cinema. And everything suggests that if the numbers hold up, Haikyu!! the Movie: Decisive Battle at the Garbage Dump will become a real phenomenon.

Haikyu!! achieves one of the best Japanese box office openings of all time

Haikyu!! the Movie: Decisive Battle at the Garbage Dump grossed 890 million yen on its opening day in Japan. Hinata and Kageyama narrowly missed the podium, but their film still had the fourth best first day at the Japanese box office!

Haikyuu!! final visual — Haruichi Furudate/Shueisha

To provide some context, Haikyu!! now ranks behind Jujutsu Kaisen 0, One Piece Film: Red, and Demon Slayer: The Infinity Train in terms of opening day revenue in Japan. It is thus hot on the heels of the three most popular franchises of the moment, proving that sports anime have every chance of entering the big leagues as well.

It must be said that the film is particularly anticipated by the community of Haikyu!! fans.: we are promised the decisive duel between Karasuno and Nekoma high schools, which has been teased since the beginning of the story. And beyond its attractive synopsis, we can count on a talented director: Susumu Mitsunaka. In addition to having directed episodes of Haikyu!!, the filmmaker was also part of the animation team for major feature films, such as The Boy and the Heron by Hayao Miyazaki or The Children of the Time of Makoto Shinkai.

At this point, Haikyu!! the Movie: Decisive Battle at the Garbage Dump does not have a release date in France. But its results are good news: if the film continues to make such numbers in Japan, it could well be of interest to distributors in other countries for good.