Following his second Academy Award win for Best Animated feature for The Boy and the Heron, filmmaker and Studio Ghibli co-founder Hayao Miyazaki is reportedly feeling the creative itch again. The 83-year-old director (the oldest ever nominated for the animated feature Oscar) reportedly regrets announcing that his age would compel him to retire after the completion of The Wind Rises, in 2013.
This was the most recent in a string of retirement announcements made by the living legend of animation.
Longtime colleague, friend, producer and studio co-founder Toshio Suzuki, shared with AP after the Oscars, “[Miyazaki] regrets having announced to the world he won’t make another film.”
Fans may yet see another Miyazaki film; Studio Ghibli VP Junichi Nishioka told press at the 2023 Toronto International Film Festival, where The Boy and the Heron made its international premiere, that the director was already pitching new ideas to the Ghibli leadership.
In the meantime, U.S. audiences can watch the Studio Ghibli catalog on Max, which just announced it has extended its exclusive multiyear licensing deal with GKIDS. The new agreement includes exclusive U.S. streaming rights to The Boy and the Heron. The platform launched the Ghibli films’ streaming debut Stateside in 2020.
The streaming release date for The Boy and the Heron will be announced later this year. The hand-drawn, original story is Miyazaki’s first feature film in 10 years, written and directed by the Academy Award-winning director. Produced by Suzuki, the Oscar-winning film features a musical score from Miyazaki’s long-time collaborator Joe Hisaishi.
“Our subscribers are always looking for unique stories, and we are happy to continue to offer these award-winning, critically acclaimed films and to add The Boy and the Heron to our deep and rich Max content offering,” said Elizabeth Bannan Atcheson, VP, Content Acquisitions, Warner Bros. Discovery.
Studio Ghibli is one of the most acclaimed and influential animation studios in the world, inspiring filmmakers and audiences alike over the last 30 years with beloved stories and breathtaking visuals. The studio is known for timeless classics such as My Neighbor Totoro, Kiki’s Delivery Service and Ponyo and has won countless international awards, including a previous Academy Award for Best Animated Feature for Spirited Away, as well as additional Oscar nominations for Howl’s Moving Castle, The Wind Rises, The Tale of The Princess Kaguya and When Marnie Was There.
Films that will be available to stream on Max in the U.S. as part of this new deal:
- Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind (1984)
- Castle in the Sky (1986)
- My Neighbor Totoro (1988)
- Kiki’s Delivery Service (1989)
- Only Yesterday (1991)
- Porco Rosso (1992)
- Ocean Waves (1993)
- Pom Poko (1994)
- Whisper of the Heart (1995)
- Princess Mononoke (1997)
- My Neighbors the Yamadas (1999)
- Spirited Away (2001)
- The Cat Returns (2002)
- Howl’s Moving Castle (2004)
- Tales from Earthsea (2006)
- Ponyo (2008)
- The Secret World of Arrietty (2010)
- From Up on Poppy Hill (2011)
- The Wind Rises (2013)
- The Tale of the Princess Kaguya (2013)
- When Marnie Was There (2014)
- Earwig and the Witch (2020)
- The Boy and the Heron (2023) — launch date TBA
