GKIDS, the acclaimed producer and distributor of award-winning animation from around the globe, has announced the English voice cast for acclaimed Oscar-winning filmmaker Hayao Miyazaki’s new feature, THE BOY AND THE HERON. The cast is absolutely stacked. Ghibli movies have a rich history of having incredibly well-known actors as part of their ensemble, but we don’t think we’ve ever seen a cast like this before.
Here is the full English-language cast:
Christian Bale – Shoichi Maki
Dave Bautista – The Parakeet King
Gemma Chan – Natsuko
Willem Dafoe – Noble Pelican
Karen Fukuhara – Lady Himi
Mark Hamill – Granduncle
Robert Pattinson – The Gray Heron
Florence Pugh – Kiriko
A young boy named Mahito yearning for his mother ventures into a world shared by the living and the dead. There death comes to an end, and life finds a new beginning. A semi-autobiographical fantasy about life, death and creation, in tribute to friendship from the mind of Hayao Miyazaki.
From the beloved and award-winning animation house, Studio Ghibli’s latest is a beautiful, reflective and engrossing tale of love, loss and discovery. Both original and English-dubbed versions will be available on general cinema release.
THE BOY AND THE HERON is a hand-drawn, original story written and directed by Hayao Miyazaki (Spirited Away, My Neighbour Totoro). Produced by Studio Ghibli co-founder Toshio Suzuki, the film features a musical score from Miyazaki’s long-time collaborator Joe Hisaishi. The theme song for the film “Spinning Globe” was written and performed by global J-pop superstar Kenshi Yonezu.
Miyazaki’s latest triumph will be released in cinemas across the UK and Ireland on Boxing Day, Tuesday 26th December 2023.
Check out the trailer below:
Are you excited to witness the wonder and mystery of The Boy and The Heron? We certainly are. Don’t forget to leave your thoughts in the comments, and be sure to catch up on all of the latest anime news right here.
