Toei Animation announced on October 18 that the Star Detective Precure movie earned an estimated 1.24 billion yen from 977,000 admissions during its first month in Japanese theaters. The ticket total pushes the film past the 1.24 billion yen lifetime gross of 2024’s Wonderful Precure! The Movie! Dokidoki♡Game no Sekai de Daibōken!. This outcome gives the 22-year magical girl series a new box office leader among its standalone theatrical releases [1].
First-Month Star Detective Precure Movie Box Office Run
The movie opened on September 18 in 348 theaters, taking in 445.58 million yen as 357,612 viewers bought tickets over its first three days. It broke the previous Friday opening record for Precure by earning more than 100 million yen on day one. That start showed that fans were eager to follow Anna Akechi into theaters, and theater managers kept screens full as word spread among families and longtime viewers [4].
Unlike films that drop off quickly after a big opening weekend, the mystery anime kept its pace over following weeks as it drew steady crowds during weekday matinees and weekend family sessions. By September 26, the box office tally had climbed to 848,409,470 yen from 684,358 tickets sold, putting it on track to challenge existing franchise benchmarks. It crossed the 1 billion yen mark on its seventeenth day in theaters, reaching that ten-figure sum faster than any earlier movie in the series. That momentum carried the film to 977,000 tickets sold and about 1.24 billion yen in earnings (approximately 7.8 million US dollars) within thirty days of release. Audience interest stayed solid throughout the month as word of mouth traveled among families and older anime viewers who followed early reports [1].
Roughly two-thirds of ticket sales arrived after opening weekend. Attendance didn’t dry up once initial crowds cleared out. Toei Animation had aimed high from day one, and passing the 1.24 billion yen mark confirms that ticket sales stayed healthy during the first four weeks [2].
Earnings Milestones Across Franchise History
Toei Animation has produced anime adventures under the Precure banner since 2004, releasing dozens of seasonal films for its television broadcasts. Until this run, the top standalone entry was 2024’s Wonderful Precure! The Movie! Dokidoki♡Game no Sekai de Daibōken!, which finished at 1.24 billion yen. It’s now clear that the Star Detective Precure movie has matched and passed that sum in just one month, setting the highest standalone return in twenty-two years [5].
The overall series crown still belongs to the 2023 crossover event Precure All Stars Movie F, which pulled in 1.54 billion yen from 1.23 million admissions. That movie featured heroines from every previous generation for the twentieth anniversary, offering a wide cast to attract moviegoers. The new detective film didn’t rely on every past Cure to reach its total, which makes its standalone record particularly notable [2].
Reaching 1.24 billion yen in thirty days puts the movie in a position to push its lifetime total even higher. Toei Animation representatives previously indicated that they hope the feature could become the first Precure film to cross the 2 billion yen line if screenings hold up through late autumn. Whether it reaches that target depends on how long theaters keep it on major screens, but its first-month run has already rewritten the record books [1].
Detective Mystery and Fairy Companion Cast
The plot begins with the Detective Precures looking into the mysterious X Mark Incident, where marked personal belongings stop working. A fairy named Rain approaches the team for help, asking them to protect a fourteen-year-old girl named Karin. Rain leads them to Karin’s Garden, a sanctuary that soon falls under attack from tiny creatures called Dame-Dame. The detectives must now solve the secret hidden inside the garden [1].
Akari Kito voices the central guest character Karin, with Nobunaga Shimazaki playing her protective fairy guardian Alan and Koki Uchiyama voicing Rain [1]. The companion fairies from the television anime also play major parts in the story, voiced by Emiri Kato as Pochitan, Karin Isobe as Shushutan, Hina Hitsujimiya as Mashutan, and Yuki Kaji as Jet-senpai. In released comments following the record announcement, Kato said, “In this movie, Pochitan is super cute and plays a huge role!” while Kaji said he was delighted to see young children waving their Pochitan Miracle Lights during screenings [3].
The television series centers on middle schooler Anna Akechi, voiced by Hikari Senga as Cure Answer, who travels back in time from 2027 to 1999. She teams up with Mikuru Kobayashi, voiced by Kaede Hondo as Cure Mystic, to stop Phantom Thieves from stealing precious items [1]. The film also features Ikumi Hasegawa as Cure Éclair and Nao Toyama as Cure Arcana, while welcoming guest heroines from Wonderful Precure! and You and Idol Precure♪ [4]. Fans can also check out the Star Detective Precure crossover with Magical DoReMi on television [6].
Creative Production Crew Behind the Feature
Toei Animation assembled an experienced production team to guide the theatrical project. Hanako Ueda directed the film following her directing work on episodes of You and Idol Precure♪ and Wonderful Precure!. Franchise veteran Yoshimi Narita wrote the screenplay, drawing on past writing credits that include Pretty Cure Splash Star and Yes! Precure 5. Emiko Miyamoto designed the characters and served as the chief animation director, while Risa Fujii handled art direction and Satoshi Takezawa served as color key artist [1].
Compositing director of photography Takumi Arai and production manager Hirotaka Naota rounded out the key crew members under original creator Izumi Todo. The musical score was composed by Erika Fukasawa and Misaki Mase. Their compositions give the detective scenes a lively rhythm that fits the retro 1999 setting. The comedy duo Cotton provided the voices for the mischievous Dame-Dama creatures, adding humor whenever the tiny troublemakers disrupted the garden [4].
Music plays a big role in the movie’s rollout, led by the ending theme song “FIRST PRISM,” performed by Yuka Masui and Chihaya Yoshitake with lyrics by Sumiyo Mutsumi. Ami Ishii performs the insert song “First Step,” featuring lyrics by Shoko Omori and arrangement by Misaki Mase [4]. To celebrate the 1.24 billion yen record, the production committee published a new lyric video for “First Step” on YouTube, and the clip pairs Ishii’s vocals with theatrical scenes of Karin, Alan, Rain, and the Cures [3].
Upcoming Star Detective Precure Movie Screenings and Bonus Gifts
The theme-song single hit store shelves on September 16, 2026, offering a CD and DVD edition for 2,530 yen and a standard CD for 1,650 yen. The official soundtrack arrived on the same date for 3,850 yen [4].
Theater campaigns will continue through late October with additional incentives for ticket buyers. Starting October 23 and running through October 29, participating cinemas will hand out the sixth admission gift, the Detective Special Card, featuring fresh artwork drawn by Futago Kamikita. On October 29, Shinjuku Wald 9 in Tokyo will host a staff-talk cheer screening in Screen 9 following its 19:00 showing. Director Hanako Ueda, Toei Animation producer Mao Nakagawa, and ABC Animation producer Kanako Tada will attend the event in person, with admission tickets priced at 2,600 yen [4].
For international audiences curious about the television series, Crunchyroll streams weekly episodes in North America, Latin America, Europe, Australia, and Africa. The television run airs on ABC TV and TV Asahi every Sunday at 8:30 a.m. JST in Japan, keeping the weekly storyline moving forward while the feature film continues its run [1]. With new admission gifts still rolling out and fan screenings scheduled through the end of October, the Star Detective Precure movie isn’t done adding to its box office total just yet [6].
- ONLINE NEWS Cayanan, J. (2026, October 19). Star Detective Precure! Film Becomes Highest-Grossing Standalone Film in Precure Franchise. Anime News Network. [Article Link]
- ONLINE NEWS Anime.com. (2026, October 18). Star Detective Precure! Movie Becomes Top Standalone Precure Film. Anime.com. [Article Link]
- ONLINE NEWS Collabo Cafe. (2026, October 19). ‘Detective PreCure!’ Earns 1.24 Billion Yen at the Box Office, Becoming the All-Time Top-Grossing Standalone Film! Collabo Cafe. [Article Link]
- ONLINE NEWS KevinRy. (2026, October 18). Star Detective Precure! Film Becomes Highest-Grossing Standalone Precure Movie. RYGAMES NEWSROOM. [Article Link]
- ONLINE NEWS Yomimono. (2026, October 19). Star Detective Precure Film Tops Franchise Standalone Earnings. Yomimono. [Article Link]
- WEBSITE Toei Animation. (2026, October 18). Star Detective Precure! Official Portal. Toei Animation. [Article Link]
