The latest installment in the popular Japanese animation franchise, "Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba -- The Movie: Infinity Castle," has officially become the highest-grossing film in South Korea for 2025, marking a historic milestone for animated features in the country. The achievement represents the first time an animated movie has claimed the top position in South Korea's annual box office rankings.
According to data released by Animax Broadcasting Korea on Saturday, the film has attracted a cumulative total of 5.638 million moviegoers as of Friday. This impressive figure narrowly surpassed the previous chart-topper, "Zombie Daughter," which had held the number one position with 5.637 million admissions. The razor-thin margin of just 1,000 viewers highlights the intense competition at the top of this year's box office race.
While foreign animated films have previously achieved remarkable success in South Korea, none had managed to secure the annual top spot until now. Notable examples include Disney's "Frozen 2," which sold an impressive 13.36 million tickets in 2019, demonstrating the significant appetite for animated content among South Korean audiences. However, despite such strong performances, animated features had never before claimed the year-end crown.
The latest "Demon Slayer" movie is based on the widely popular manga and television anime series of the same name. This film serves as the first installment of an ambitious three-part finale planned to conclude the beloved series, generating significant anticipation among fans both domestically and internationally.
Since its South Korean theatrical release on August 22, the movie has consistently broken attendance records and set new benchmarks for animated films. The feature reached the significant milestone of 1 million viewers within just two days of its opening, demonstrating immediate and overwhelming audience interest. The film's momentum continued as it surpassed the 3 million viewer mark on its tenth day of screening, establishing the fastest pace among all movies released in South Korea this year across all genres.
