GKIDS has announced the English voice cast for acclaimed Oscar-winning filmmaker Hayao Miyazaki’s new feature The Boy and The Heron. And what an impressive lineup it is. The English language dubbed version of the film will feature the voices of Christian Bale (Ford v Ferrari, Amsterdam, The Pale Blue Eye), Dave Bautista (Dune, Guardians of the Galaxy), Gemma Chan (The Creator, Eternals, Crazy Rich Asians), Willem Dafoe (At Eternity’s Gate, The Florida Project), Karen Fukuhara (The Boys, Suicide Squad), Mark Hamill (The Machine, House of Usher), Robert Pattinson (The Batman, Tenet, upcoming Mickey 17), and Florence Pugh (Oppenheimer, Black Widow, Little Women). Luca Padovan joins the cast as Mahito Maki, and Mamoudou Athie, Tony Revolori, and Dan Stevens are featured as the Parakeets.
GKIDS handled casting and produced the English version in close consultation with Studio Ghibli, with ADR direction by Michael Sinterniklaas at NYAV Post, and an English script adaptation by Stephanie Sheh. The English language dub was produced in accordance with the SAG-AFTRA Foreign Dubbing Agreement.
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The Boy and The Heron will arrive in theaters on December 8, 2023, in both the original Japanese and English language versions. The latest feature from Japan’s celebrated animation house, Studio Ghibli, begins special preview engagements on November 22 before expanding to cinemas nationwide and in Canada on December 8, 2023. The hand-drawn, animated feature – director Miyazaki’s first feature film in 10 years – is an original story written and directed by Studio Ghibli co-founder Hayao Miyazaki, produced by Academy Award-nominee and co-founder Toshio Suzuki, and featuring a musical score from Miyazaki’s long-time collaborator Joe Hisaishi. Its theme song, “Spinning Globe,” was written and performed by global J-pop superstar Kenshi Yonezu.
GKIDS has a long-standing partnership with Studio Ghibli and handles North American distribution for the studio’s famed library of films across all theatrical, home video, digital, and streaming platforms. The company has released Studio Ghibli’s most recent films in theaters nationwide, including the Academy Award-nominated The Tale of The Princess Kaguya, the Academy Award-nominated When Marnie Was There, From Up on Poppy Hill, and more. Since 2017, GKIDS has produced the annual Ghibli Fest, a monthly nationwide theatrical program of Studio Ghibli film screenings in over 800 theaters across the country. The series continues this year with a focus on the films of Hayao Miyazaki.
CAST LIST
- Shoichi Maki Christian Bale
- The Parakeet King Dave Bautista
- Natsuko Gemma Chan
- Noble Pelican Willem Dafoe
- Lady Himi Karen Fukuhara
- Granduncle Mark Hamill
- The Gray Heron Robert Pattinson
- Kiriko Florence Pugh
