BLUELOCK: Episode Nagi Makes a Strong U.S. Debut
The anime film adaptation of Kōta Sannomiya's BLUELOCK -Episode Nagi-, a spinoff from Muneyuki Kaneshiro and Yūsuke Nomura's popular Blue Lock soccer manga, made a notable impact at the U.S. box office over the weekend. Garnering $1,043,969, it secured the 13th spot. The film earned $512,987 on its opening day Friday, followed by $294,418 on Saturday, and $236,564 on Sunday. Crunchyroll premiered the film in the U.S. on June 28.
In Japan, the film debuted on April 19 and was available in IMAX, MX4D, 4DX, and regular formats. It sold 337,000 tickets and earned 463 million yen (approximately $2.99 million) in its first three days, placing it at the number two spot in the Japanese box office during its opening weekend. As of June 9, the film has accumulated a total of 1,749,988,280 yen (about $11.12 million).
The cast of the film includes Nobunaga Shimazaki as Seishirō Nagi, Yūma Uchida as Reo Mikage, Kazuyuki Okitsu as Zantetsu Tsurugi, Kazuki Ura as Yoichi Isagi, Tasuku Kaito as Meguru Bachira, Yūki Ono as Rensuke Kunigami, Sōma Saitō as Hyōma Chigiri, Kōki Uchiyama as Rin Itoshi, Hiroshi Kamiya as Jinpachi Ego, and Subaru Kimura as Ryō Nameoka.
The film's production saw the return of many familiar faces. Directed by Shunsuke Ishikawa at 8-Bit, with Taku Kishimoto overseeing and writing the series scripts, and story supervision by the manga's Kaneshiro. Nomura was credited as the character designer, with music composed by Jun Murayama. The theme song "Stormy" was performed by Nissy and SKY-HI.
The successful launch of BLUELOCK: Episode Nagi in the U.S. reflects the growing popularity and anticipation for this thrilling soccer anime, as it continues to captivate audiences worldwide.