These five anime films are the top grossing Japanese anime films worldwide, making them a popular option for anyone interested.
Spirited Away
Over two decades ago, Spirited Away was released in 2001, and firmly established itself as the best anime film Japan had ever produced. Like many anime on this list, it comes from Studio Ghibli, a Japanese animation studio known for producing hit after hit, especially when directed by Miyazaki Hayao.
This film could be credited with anime reaching the mainstream levels it currently holds in Japan and has definitely influenced anime films as a whole. By 2002, it had become the highest-grossing anime film worldwide thanks to its release in China and the United States, and it held this spot before being taken over nearly two decades later by two anime films listed further down.
Howl's Moving Castle
After the worldwide success that Spirited Away reached, fans were eager for the next film that Miyazaki, through Studio Ghibli, would present, and, oh man, did he deliver. Howl's Moving Castle, released in 2004, is loosely based off the novel, Howl's Moving Castle, written by Diana Wynne Jones. Though many changes were made between the film and the novel, the film still reached worldwide success, grossing a total of 236 million U.S. dollars.
Ponyo
The last and most recent Studio Ghibli film on this list, Miyazaki continued to cement his legacy in the animation film industry. Due to the rising popularity of Miyazaki films, Ponyo opened in 927 movie theatres in the United States, the most any Studio Ghibli film has ever had. Despite these expectations, Ponyo is actually the least high grossing film on this list. This does not mean it failed because it still reached 204 million U.S. dollars, but the other competitors were too strong, and expectations for this film might have been too high.
Due to the retirement of Miyazaki Hayao, it is debatable whether Studio Ghibli will ever reach the acclaim it had in the past, but one thing is for sure. The impact that Miyazaki and Studio Ghibli had on the anime world will be felt for generations to come.
Your Name
For almost two decades, Spirited Away reigned supreme on anime films box office scores, but an anime film written and directed by Makoto Shinkai, would soon surpass it. Your Name (Kimi no Na Wa), released in 2016, reached worldwide attention when it almost surpassed Spirited Away in grossing in Japan. Many people wondered whether this was a Studio Ghibli film because of how good it was and were shocked to find out it was written by someone other than Miyazaki. When it was finally released worldwide, it officially surpassed Spirited away in worldwide grossing during the year 2017.
It did not maintain this spot for long due to the rerelease that Spirited Away had for its anniversary, but Your Name's impact on breaking Spirited Away's record worldwide was noteworthy and showed how much more anime films had to offer.
Demon Slayer: Mugen Train
Currently the highest-grossing anime film worldwide (at $505 million), Demon Slayer: Mugen Train continues the story directly from its first season's finale episode. What distinguishes this anime from the others is that it's based off of popular manga Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba (Blade of Demon Destruction) written and illustrated by Koyoharu Gotouge. Many popular anime are derived from already popular manga, but Demon Slayer is the first to attain the worldwide film phenomenon status it has reached.
It was no surprise when Demon Slayer surpassed the other films and reached the pinnacle of success in anime box office. Many fans were already looking forward to this and the delays due to COVID only increased the anticipation.
It should be noted that in order to understand the story of the movie so far, one must watch the first season of the anime show, which contains twenty-six episodes.
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