Fans of charming, quirky Japanese animation will be pleased to hear that the movies of legendary animation house Studio Ghibli are coming to Netflix… but only for an international audience. U.S. viewers will be able to stream Ghibli movies on the HBO Max service once it launches, but viewers outside of Northern America and Japan will be able to watch the movies on Netflix starting next month.
“In this day and age, there are various great ways a film can reach audiences,” Studio Ghibli producer Toshio Suzuki said in a press release. “We’ve listened to our fans and have made the definitive decision to stream our film catalogue. We hope people around the world will discover the world of Studio Ghibli through this experience.”
This is something of a reversal for the studio, as co-founder Hayao Miyazaki has previously said he did not want his films shown on streaming services, citing a preference for the sociable aspect of seeing movies in theaters.
However, with the Ghibli movies coming to HBO’s streaming service HBO Max in the U.S. when it launches in May, that ship has already sailed. If the movies are to be streamable within the U.S., it makes sense they should be made available to stream internationally as well.
In total, 21 Ghibli films will be coming to Netflix globally, available to stream in all countries in which the service operates except for the U.S., Canada, and Japan.
There’s good news both for purists who prefer to watch the films in the original Japanese with subtitles to appreciate the voice acting, and for those who prefer to watch the films with dubbing into their native language: Netflix says the films will be subtitled in 28 languages and dubbed in up to 20 languages.
The complete release schedule for the movies is as follows:
February 1, 2020:
- Castle in the Sky (1986), My Neighbor Totoro (1988), Kiki’s Delivery Service (1989), Only Yesterday (1991), Porco Rosso (1992), Ocean Waves (1993), Tales from Earthsea (2006)
March 1, 2020:
- Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind (1984), Princess Mononoke (1997), My Neighbors the Yamadas (1999), Spirited Away (2001), The Cat Returns (2002), Arrietty (2010), The Tale of The Princess Kaguya (2013)
April 1, 2020:
- Pom Poko (1994), Whisper of the Heart (1995), Howl’s Moving Castle (2004), Ponyo on the Cliff by the Sea (2008), From Up on Poppy Hill (2011), The Wind Rises (2013), When Marnie Was There (2014)
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