Studio Ghibli animated Japanese films will come to Netflix

The Japanese animation house Studio Ghibli has opened its doors to streaming platforms after holding out on an invitation for the better part of a decade. Netflix has acquired the rights to 21 animated feature films for all regions it operates in except for Japan, Canada, and the United States. Studio Ghibli titles will be added to its movie library in batches from February 2020.

The boutique studio has been reluctant to offer digitised versions of its movies for streaming until very recently. In December 2019, it began monetizing its content through online download. The titles produced by the studio will be streamed on HBO’s upcoming platform HBO Max this spring.

Netflix will be the home of Ghibli movies in South Asia, Europe, the Middle East, Australia, Africa, and Latin America. Work is on to subtitle the movies in 28 languages. The audio will be dubbed into 20 languages. However, the Tokyo-based company is keeping a few movies to itself.


The Netflix and HBO deals do not cover the critically-acclaimed 'Grave of the Fireflies' to which Studio Ghibli does not hold the publishing rights, even though the movie is their intellectual property. The first wave of the anime will drop on Netflix from February 1, and includes titles like 'My Neighbor Totoro', 'Castle in the Sky', 'Only Yesterday', 'Kiki’s Delivery Service', 'Tales from Earthsea', and 'Ocean Waves'.

The second wave of movies will release on March 1. They include 'Princess Mononoke', 'Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind', 'Arrietty', 'Spirited Away', 'Yamadas', and 'The Tale of The Princess Kaguya'.

Netflix will add a third tranche of movies on April 1 - 'The Wind Rises', 'Whisper of the Heart', 'Pom Poko', 'Howl’s Moving Castle', and 'When Marnie Was There'.