With Solo Leveling on Demon Slayer's tail on streaming, another anime is threatening it at box office

A new addition to a long-running classic anime franchise could be on its way to dethroning a Demon Slayer compilation movie's domestic box office numbers.

There’s no doubt in Solo Leveling fans’ minds that their beloved, captivating dark fantasy series will surpass the long-running One Piece on Crunchyroll ratings even though the latter predates it by decades. However, before coming for Eiichiro Oda’s magnum opus, the new standout anime must dethrone Demon Slayer, which currently holds the Top 2 rank on the go-to anime library.

The latest Mobile Suit Gundam big-screen offering is butting heads with the 2023 film Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba – To the Swordsmith Village's records.

Not long ago, the series based on Chugong’s web novel and manhwa creation dusted Jujutsu Kaisen’s legacy by taking its spot at #3. At the time of writing, Solo Leveling is the third-most-rated anime on the streaming giant, surpassing the 500,000 mark (503.6K and counting).

While Jujutsu Kaisen has slipped down with a score of 491.4K, One Piece sits at the top with 583.7K ratings. At #2, Demon Slayer has 575.7K ratings, leaving less than a 70,000 gap opening before Solo Leveling steals its currently occupied second rank.

Demon Slayer vs Mobile Suit Gundam: Japanese box office race

That said, Demon Slayer’s once-perceived unbeatable position at the Japanese box office is now also being threatened by a new player of an old game.

Although Tanjiro’s story is far from over, with the final film trilogy, Infinity Castle, already in the works, a January anime movie premiere has threatened the Demon Slayer Corps’ reign.

Mobile Suit Gundam GQuuuuuuX -Beginning- opened in Japanese theatres on January 17, 2025. Instantly taking over the domestic box office charts, it debuted at #1 and stretched out its top-grossing stance for four consecutive weeks, according to Screen Rant.

Japanese media site Oricon recently reported that Gundam GQuuuuuuX -Beginning- has already grossed over 2.2 billion yen (approx $14 million) at the box office since its January release. The Feb 10 report confirmed that the brand-new cinematic opening had attracted 1.38 million viewers (and counting).

Demon Slayer compilation movie's box office stats could be defeated soon

On the contrary, the 2023 film Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba – To the Swordsmith Village finished its big screen run after bringing in around 2.26 million viewers, resulting in 3.1 billion yen (approx $20 million) in revenue. Technically, both films are compilation movies. As their competition rages on, Demon Slayer currently leads the charge. The latest theatrical Gundam offering has added fuel to the classic franchise’s fire of resurgence.

Although Demon Slayer’s top-scoring position on both Crunchyroll and the box office currently remains undefeated, the growing numbers on both fronts raise an alarm about the series’ future.