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“The Boy and the Heron”
Courtesy of GKIDS
Hayao Miyazaki The boy and the heron (Kimitachi wa do ikiru ka) will stream on Netflix worldwide outside the US and Japan as part of a deal unveiled on Tuesday.
Netflix will also acquire an additional 22 Studio Ghibli films as it extends its agreement with the venerable animation studio founded by Miyazaki, Isao Takahata, and Toshio Suzuki. In the US, Max recently acquired the streaming rights to the anime guru's semi-autobiographical fantasy film to become the exclusive streaming site for Studio Ghibli films.
GKIDS, which handles North American distribution for Studio Ghibli, and Max have signed a multi-year extension to their deal to retain the studio's library on the Warner Bros. platform. Discovery. To secure its own global deal, Netflix has extended its deal with Goodfellas and GKIDS to release Studio Ghibli films outside the US and Japan.
Netflix will set a premiere date for The boy and the heron – a whimsical animated film based on Miyazaki's childhood memories that recently won the 2024 Academy Award for Best Animated Feature – due later this year. Miyazaki's first feature film in 10 years is an original hand-drawn story written and directed by the director.
The boy and the heron The film grossed over $85 million at the box office in Japan, opened the Toronto Film Festival with a world premiere, then topped the North American box office charts on its opening weekend with a record $12.8 million in theatrical ticket receipts.
Netflix has also picked up other Studio Ghibli titles such as Miyazaki's works kidnapped (which previously won the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature in 2003), Princess Mononoke, Arrietty, Kiki's Delivery Service, My Neighbor Totoro And The story of Princess Kaguya. Netflix will stream these titles in Asia Pacific, EMEA and Latin America, with subtitles in 28 languages and dubbed in up to 20 languages.
