The First Slam Dunk, which debuted on December 3, 2022, in Japanese theaters, has already shattered a number of box office records. The movie earned more than 10 billion yen (about $75 million) in the 67 days after its debut by selling 6.87 million tickets.
It is only the second Toei production movie to do this; the first was One Piece Film Red. The First Slam Dunk, which Takehiko Inoue directed, is presently tied with Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest for the position of #42 on the Japanese charts and is the #13 highest-grossing anime movie of all time. The movie’s lifetime box office haul will be interesting to watch after its illustrious run is through.
The First Slam Dunk set a new standard for sports anime with its record-breaking 10 billion yen box office haul in just 67 days. On December 3, 2022, the film was released in Japan in conventional and 40 IMAX theaters. On December 10, 2022, Dolby Cinema screens were added. Upon release, the film topped the box office rankings and remained there for six weeks.
On January 4, 2023, the movie was also released internationally in South Korea. To date, more than 2.43 million tickets have been sold, bringing in a total of over US$ 19.4 million. The movie even succeeded in unseating the top-rated film, Avatar: The Way of Water, in the fourth week after its premiere in South Korea.
At the Japanese box office, the First Slam Dunk movie has maintained its stellar performance for more than two months, with devoted series fans boosting ticket purchases.
The popularity of the series in 1990s Japan is largely responsible for the movie’s subsequent success. From 1990 to 1996, the manga was serialized in Shueisha’s Weekly Shnen Jump magazine, and from 1993 to 1996, Toei Animation produced the anime version.
Slam Dunk, a famous manga series created and illustrated by Takehiko Inoue, is credited with popularizing basketball in Japan. The series had such a profound effect that even the Japanese Basketball Association has emphasized how it helped turn basketball into a popular sport in Japan.
It is without a doubt one of the most well-known and best-selling sports manga of all time, and it has a devoted following comparable to that of Hajime No Ippo and Haikyuu. These elements working together are the main cause of The First Slam Dunk’s popularity and its over 10 billion yen box office haul.
The movie office success of this basketball cult classic has, however, somewhat slowed down after the publication of Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba “To the Swordsmith Village,” with most spectators choosing Ufotable’s monumental work as a substitute.
Despite this, The First Slam Dunk movie will always be regarded as a revered classic that exposes a new generation to Takehiko Inoue’s works and tells one of the greatest tales in the annals of the sports anime subgenre.
