With its gross reaching $78 million in China, which is the films second biggest after its $180 million finish in its native Japan, Makoto Shinkai's "Your Name" has become the highest grossing Japanese film ever released in China.
According to Cartoon Brew, "Your Name" has shattered the box office record set by "Stand By Me Doraemon", which grossed $76.16 million. The overwhelming commercial success of "Your Name" has baffled film analysts as the film's record gross came at a time where the diplomatic relationship between China and Japan has been at its lowest in recent times.
China is the world's second-largest cinema market after the United States, Japan Today reported. However, the Chinese government limits the number of foreign films that can be distributed in the mainland annually, and it tightly controls which movies are shown.
But Chinese regulatory body approved the screening of Makoto Shinkai's smash-hit at theaters with exceptionally fast speed, at a time when Tokyo and Beijing are trying to repair bilateral ties. To quote Japanese Today:
When the Doraemon film arrived at theaters in May 2015, it was the first Japanese motion picture to go on general release in China since July 2012.
China shut out Japanese films in 2013 and 2014, during which time diplomatic ties between the two countries were at their lowest ebb in decades due to disputes over wartime issues and the sovereignty of a group of small islands in the East China Sea.
In 2015, there were only two Japanese films distributed nationwide. But this year, possibly reflecting China's strong will to improve public sentiment toward Japan, the number of Japanese films allowed to be shown in Chinese theaters jumped to 11, including Shinkai's animation.
After its release in China, "Your Name" has now earned a total of $276 million which makes it currently in a close approximate with Hayao Miyazaki's "Spirited Away" which has a global turnout of $289.1 million.
But this record could soon be broken by "Your Name" as it is still about to open in France on December 28, and Korea on January 4. Moreover, there is still no information as to its release date in the United States.
