Studio Ghibli Just Revealed the English Cast for the Boy and the Heron

We’re so psyched because The Boy and the Heron has such a star-studded cast for what may be Hayao Miyazaki’s last movie!

Rumors and stories circulated that Studio Ghibli’s The Boy and the Heron may be famed illustrator Hayao Miyazaki’s last movie. And for those who don’t know him, he is the one who brought movies like Princess Mononoke, Ponyo, Howl’s Moving Castle, and even the beloved My Neighbor Totoro to life! If this is his last movie, it makes sense to go all out and have a star-studded cast to which Studio Ghibli revealed who would be part of the selection of English voiceovers.

The Voice Acting Stars are No Lightweights!

Voicing the lead character, Shoichi Maki, in the English version of the movie is The Dark Knight and American Psycho’s actor Christian Bale. He is no stranger to the voice acting industry, especially in Ghibli’s movies, since he voiced Howl — the namesake of Howl’s Moving Castle. He voiced Thomas in Disney’s 1995 Pocahontas movie, too. Shoichi Maki is also the father of Mahito Maki, who is voiced by Luca Padovan who has been acting in Nickelodeon’s reboot of Are You Afraid Of The Dark?

But it seems that the two Batman actors will meet for The Boy and the Heron’s voice acting as Robert Pattinson, who recently starred as Batman as well, will voice the Grey Heron.

Heavyweights like Dave Batista, Willem Dafoe, Florence Pugh, as well as Mark Hamil, will be joining the roster. We know that Dave’s portrayal as Drax the Destroyer made him a heavyweight in entertainment. While Florence Pugh has experience as a voice actor in Puss In Boots: The Last Wish, Mark Hamil already became legendary as a voice actor. Besides the iconic Joker from Batman: The Animated Series, Mark voiced Fire Lord Ozai from Avatar: The Last Airbender. Willem Dafoe has a decorated record, too, voicing multiple characters in The Simpsons and Finding Nemo‘s wise angelfish, Gill.

Besides the stars in the roster exciting us, it’s also because we know that Studio Ghibli always has something fresh yet reflective to offer. While Hayao Miyazaki tackled serious topics, it was always in a way that made it easy for everyone in the family to understand and ponder on.

We can’t wait to watch the movie!

Although The Boy and the Heron already debuted at the 2023 Toronto International Film Festival, it was in Japanese and critics called it an “ultimate statement” from the beloved animator himself. But the best part is, it turns out that Hayao Miyazaki’s retiring from retirement! Studio Ghibli came out with a statement with The Verge that Hayao Miyazaki failed to go into retirement yet again. That’s one thing we’re okay with him failing at! Hayao Miyazaki’s films have always held a special place in our family’s and our hearts and we can’t wait until it comes out this coming fourth quarter.

According to IGN, the English version of The Boy and the Heron may debut on December 8.

However, due to other Christmas films and the local film scene, The Boy and The Heron will now debut on January 8, 2024.

Originally, the movie came out with another title: How Do You Live?

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