It has been revealed that the theatrical version of the short anime "Galaxy Express Milky Subway," "Galaxy Express Milky Subway: Local Train to the Theater," has grossed 300 million yen and attracted over 220,000 moviegoers in the 10 days since its release on February 6th. Despite only being released in 76 theaters, it debuted in 4th place last week in the weekend attendance rankings (according to Kogyo Tsushinsha), and ranked 8th in the same rankings from February 13th to 15th.
It was also announced that as a second gift for attendees, stickers featuring another visual designed by Yorokov, known as a master of retro movie posters, will be distributed from February 20th.
"Galaxy Express Milky☆Subway" is a sequel to the short 3D animation "Milky☆Highway," which was released on YouTube in 2022 as a graduation project by Kameyama Yohei, who was then a student at a video vocational school. After being arrested for violating the Galactic Road Traffic Act, Chiharu, a cyborg, and others are tasked with cleaning the interplanetary train "Milky☆Subway" as a volunteer activity, but they become embroiled in a major incident on board when the train suddenly goes out of control.
The series has gained popularity for its nostalgic visuals and unique, natural dialogue, with a total of over 200 million views on YouTube. The film version re-edits all 12 episodes of the short anime series and adds new parts.
