By Rebecca Rubin
LOS ANGELES, May 2 (Variety.com) - After narrowly losing first place in its opening weekend, "Demon Slayer: Mugen Train" has surged ahead to outpace "Mortal Kombat" on U.S. box office charts.
The anime action adventure "Demon Slayer" is expected to end the weekend with $6.4 million in ticket sales, while "Mortal Kombat" trails closely behind with $6.2 million between Friday and Sunday. Both films debuted last weekend and dipped roughly 70% from initial revenues.
"Demon Slayer," which is playing in 1915 North American venues, has earned an impressive $34.1 million in the U.S. and Canada to date. The film, from Funimation and Aniplex, has surpassed "Dragon Ball: Super Broly" ($30 million) to become the third-highest grossing anime title in North America.
Overseas, the latest "Demon Slayer" has already set several box office records. In Japan, it has become the highest-grossing movie ever with ticket sales surpassing $368 million. It's also the highest-grossing anime film ever with $423 million globally.
"Mortal Kombat," a martial arts-inspired adaptation of the popular video game, has grossed $34 million in two weeks. Those receipts are notable because the Warner Bros. release is playing simultaneously on HBO Max. The studio's entire 2021 slate is following a similar rollout pattern.
In third place, "Godzilla vs. Kong," a Warner Bros. and Legendary film, collected $2.7 million from 2,753 screens. The monster mashup has earned $90 million over its first five weeks.