“One Piece” Tops Japan’s Box Office in 2022

Japanese box office earnings totaled ¥213 billion in 2022, according to the Motion Picture Producers Association of Japan. This was an increase of 31.6% compared to the previous year and a recovery to 80% of the pre-pandemic level in 2019 of ¥261 billion, the highest annual figure recorded since the current reporting system based on total box office gross was introduced in 2000.

Movie theater attendance also rose by 32.4% year on year to 152 million people, while spending on admission fees remained almost unchanged, averaging ¥1,402 per person.

Japanese movies showed a 14.2% year-on-year box office revenue increase to ¥147 billion. Animated movies performed well, with the top three each generating more than ¥10 billion in revenue. These were One Piece Film Red, released by Toei in August 2022, with ¥19.7 billion; Jujutsu Kaisen 0, released by Tōhō in December 2021, with ¥13.8 billion; and Suzume, released by Tōhō in November 2022, with ¥13.2 billion.

Meanwhile, there was a huge year-on-year increase of 98.3% for overseas movies, bringing in a total revenue of ¥66.5 billion. The top-earning overseas movie was Top Gun: Maverick, released by Tōwa Pictures in May 2022, with ¥13.6 billion.

Top Five Movies in Japan by Box Office Revenue in 2022

Japanese

International

(Created by Nippon.com based on data from the Motion Picture Producers Association of Japan.)

The combined total of annual releases of Japanese and overseas movies was 1,143, up 184 from the previous year. Total movie theater screens fell by 14 year-on-year to 3,634.

(Translated from Japanese. Banner photo © Pixta.)