This year’s Golden Week in Japan is gearing up to be one to remember. It’s usually one of the longest holidays Japanese people get anyway, but this year is a special case as there will be an unprecedented 10-day continuous holiday due to the abdication of Emperor Heisei. Japanese people will have a lot of free time that week, and those with children will no doubt be scratching their heads for something to do. To that end, Detective Conan and Marvel’s Avengers have teamed up for a new collaboration to get families to go to the theatre.
Both Avengers and Conan have films coming out around that time, with Avengers: Endgame releasing on April 26 and Detective Conan: Fist of Blue Sapphire releasing a little earlier on April 12. These two mega-franchises from two different continents are therefore setting their eyes on the Golden Week prize, set this year to be an even bigger market for revenue due to the extended holiday.
A new website has been opened to promote both films in tandem. It points out the similarities between the two films in a rather tongue-in-cheek way in an effort to attract viewers: both have heroes in them (although one film’s heroes are superpowered while the other’s are not) and both have mysterious stones in them that form an integral part of the plot. They also have remarkably similar posters…
The collaboration has also released a new “tag movie” trailer that cuts together the trailers for both Fist of Blue Sapphire and Endgame, targeting families and young children. You can check it out below:
Overall, if there were any franchises to smash Golden Week box office records, then it would be Conan and Marvel’s Avengers. The Detective Conan movies have continued to beat their own incredible box office records year after year, and the Marvel Cinematic Universe is already one of the highest grossing media franchises of all time. I’m sure that Japanese theaters would also be grateful for the boosted revenue to see in what should hopefully be an era of “excellent harmony” for Japan.
The collaboration has only just been announced, so information surrounding other plans such as a present campaign and special collaborative event have yet to be announced. Keep your eyes on the official website for more information.