The Detective Precures have cracked their biggest case yet — at the box office. The film Star Detective Precure! The Movie: The Mysterious Garden and the Secret of 2 People has officially become the highest-grossing standalone film in the Precure franchise’s two-decade history.
The staff announced on Sunday that the movie has sold 977,000 tickets and earned an estimated 1.24 billion yen (about US$7.8 million) in its first month alone. That figure has already surpassed the 1.24 billion yen total of the 2024 Wonderful Precure! The Movie!, previously the franchise’s record-holder among standalone films.
Star Detective Precure! The Movie (Credits: 2026 映画名探偵プリキュア！製作委員会)
A Strong Opening That Kept Growing
The signs were there from day one. The film opened in Japan on September 18, debuting at #3 in its opening weekend with 358,000 tickets and 446 million yen (about US$2.82 million) in just three days. Rather than fading, the mystery kept drawing audiences, climbing past the previous record within its first month.
The movie is the big-screen outing for Star Detective Precure!, the 23rd main anime entry in the franchise. The story follows the Detective Precures as they investigate the “X Mark Incident,” which leads them to a fairy named Rain and a lovely garden called Karin’s Garden — overrun by tiny creatures called “Dame Dame” and hiding a secret only a great detective could uncover. The film’s original characters are voiced by Akari Kitō as Karin, Nobunaga Shimazaki as Alan, and Kōki Uchiyama as Rain, with past Precure stars from You and Idol Precure♪ and Wonderful Precure! also appearing.
The Team Behind the Hit
The film was directed by Hanako Ueda, written by veteran Precure scribe Yoshimi Narita, with music by Erika Fukasawa and Misaki Umase and character designs by Emiko Miyamoto. Yūka Masui and Chihaya Yoshitake perform the ending theme “FIRST PRISM,” while Ami Ishii handles the insert song “First Step.”
The TV series debuted February 1 and follows Anna Akechi, a middle schooler who travels back from 2027 to 1999 and teams up with Mikuru Kobayashi to battle the Phantom Thieves as the Detective Precures. With a record-breaking movie and a crossover Halloween episode with Magical DoReMi on October 25, the franchise has never been hotter.
Also Read: Star Detective Precure! Crosses Over With Magical DoReMi in Halloween Episode on October 25
Source: Anime News Network — read the full story there.
