If you ever want to stir up a heated debate among anime lovers, then there’s no quicker way than a very simple three-word question: “Subs or dubs?” Purists tend to swear by subtitles, whilst mainstream moviegoers often appreciate the convenience and accessibility of a solid English-language dub. Anything that gets more people watching Japanese animation can surely only be a good thing – and frankly, when you see the star-studded English-language voice cast assembled for Studio Ghibli’s upcoming The Boy And The Heron, you’ll want to check the dub out, whichever side of the fence you sit on.
Announced by North American distributor GKIDS yesterday, the occasion of Hayao Miyazaki’s latest – and potentially last – film has brought together a remarkable voice cast, including no less than two Batmen, a Joker, and a Drax the Destroyer. Christian Bale, who voiced the titular role in Miyazaki’s Howl’s Moving Castle (Howl, not the castle, that is), returns to the Ghibli fray as fretful father Shoichi Maki; Dave Bautista is the self-explanatorily named The Parakeet King; Gemma Chan voices Shoichi’s second wife, Natsuko; Willem Dafoe is Noble Pelican; Karen Fukuhara will play Lady Himi; Mark Hamill voices the suspiciously Miyazaki-esque Granduncle; Robert Pattinson is The Gray Heron (who, it feels important to note, sounds like a cross between Gilbert Gottfried and Pazuzu in the original Japanese language track); and newly minted national treasure Florence Pugh provides the voice of Kiriko.
The impressive ensemble are joined by newcomer Luca Padovan as protagonist Mahito Maki and Mamoudou Athie, Tony Revolri and Dan Stevens, who voice the weapon-handy warrior Parakeets. It’s important to note that all of the cast recorded their roles in accordance with the SAG-AFTRA Foreign Dubbing Agreement.
Written and directed by Miyazaki, and loosely based on Genzaburo Yoshino’s novel How Do You Live?, the legendary animator’s semi-autobiographical story centres around 12-year-old schoolboy Mahito Maki. When his mother dies during a firebombing raid, Mahito – along with his father Shoichi – moves to a remote country house to live with his auntie, Natsuko. There, a series of encounters with the mysterious Gray Heron lead Mahito through a magical tunnel and into a world of fantasy, self-discovery, and… well… to say anything more would be to spoil the many surprises stuffed up Miyazaki’s sleeve.
Suffice to say, you’ll be heron plenty more about this one in the coming weeks and months. The Boy And The Heron is set to release in cinemas on 26 December.