‘Infinity Castle’ Tops ‘Superman,’ 2025’s Biggest Comic Book Film

Crunchyroll and Sony’s Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle, produced by Ufotable, has overtaken Warner Bros.’ Superman at the global box office, marking a shift in the theatrical landscape and potentially a defining moment for the anime industry. The film has now passed the $615 million worldwide total posted by Superman and continues to climb, positioning itself as one of the top earners of 2025 and the year’s highest-grossing comic book adaptation.

Infinity Castle has earned more than $620 million to date. Its North American haul ($118.1 million) accounts for 19.5% of the film’s global revenue, and it has set a record for an anime release in the U.S.

Infinity Castle’s performance highlights a long-gestating trend that has seen anime become one of the leading forces at the global box office, while also capturing an increasingly larger share of the North American market. While Japanese animation has long been successful at home, this level of worldwide reach was once unthinkable for a title adapted from a manga.

The comparison with superhero films this year is equally telling. Superman was designed to relaunch DC’s cinematic universe around the character most closely associated with the genre, but its international turnout was weaker than Warner Bros. was likely hoping for, with only 43 percent of revenue coming from overseas markets. Other comic book titles have struggled even more. Fantastic Four: First Steps finished with $521 million, Captain America: Brave New World reached $415 million, and Thunderbolts stalled at $382 million despite positive reviews. In each case, international audiences appear to have lost enthusiasm for a once-dominant genre.

By contrast, the animated Infinity Castle has now leapfrogged three major 2025 superhero releases and claimed the top spot among comic book adaptations overall. Its success signals an evolving market that is hungry for new types of large-scale fantasy and adventure storytelling. If the planned Infinity Castle trilogy maintains similar momentum, there is no reason the franchise shouldn’t make $1.5 – $2 billion when all is said and done, a benchmark that would have been unthinkable for an anime property not named Pokémon just a few years ago.