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Smile Precure! Film Is 1st in Franchise to Top Box Office
posted on by Sarah Nelkin
Eiga Smile Precure: Ehon no Naka wa Minna Chiguhagu!, the newest movie in the Precure magical girl anime franchise, ranked #1 at the Japanese box office for this weekend — the highest spot that a Precure movie has ever reached. The 13th movie in the series was seen about 173,000 times this past Saturday and Sunday and earned about 193,000,000 yen (about US$2.42 million).
The fifth Precure movie, Yes! Precure 5 GoGo! Okashi no Kuni no Happy Birthday, came the closest to topping the box office before, but reached #2 instead.
Along with the Smile Precure! television anime's cast, Megumi Hayashibara (Evangelion, Ranma ½, Cowboy Bebop, Slayers, Mardock Scramble) voiced a guest role in the newest film. The story has the Cure magical girls journeying through a storybook world.
The Precure shōjo anime franchise began in 2005 with the television series Futari wa Pretty Cure, which featuring the two Cure magical girls Nagisa and Honoka. The franchise has now spawned nine television series, 13 movies, and an official store. The films altogether have been seen an estimated 10 million times in theaters.
A trademark for Doki Doki! Precure was filed with the Japanese patent office earlier this month.
Source: Mainichi Shimbun's Mantan Web
