The first Studio Ghibli TV series is coming to Amazon


While the beloved Japanese animation house Studio Ghibli is no longer making movies, fans of My Neighbor Totoro, Kiki's Delivery Service, and Spirited Away have a whole lot to celebrate Friday. Amazon Studios announced it has picked up the first television series by Ghibli for streaming in the U.S. later this year, The Verge reports.
The 26-episode series Ronia The Robber's Daughter will feature English-language dubbing by The X-Files' Gillian Anderson (the Japanese-language trailer, with no subtitles, is below).
Although Studio Ghibli hasn't made a feature film since co-founder Hayao Miyazaki's retirement, it has continued to assist in co-productions — for Ronia, it teams with CGI animation studio Polygon and will be directed by Miyazaki's son. The Verge writes:
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Ronia (or Ronja, in the Japanese version) is based on a thoroughly delightful 1981 fantasy novel by Astrid Lindgren, the Swedish creator of Pippi Longstocking. The story follows a young girl growing up wild in a woodland full of strange creatures, as the only child of the leader of a band of notorious thieves. She has various adventures involving the magical creatures of the wood, but eventually forms a Romeo-and-Juliet friendship with a young boy who's the only child of the leader of a rival band of thieves. The animated series features Ghibli's usual phenomenally rich backdrops for the woodland setting, and its familiar rounded character designs, but they're clearly CGI, with a gimbaled floaty quality that Ghibli characters don't normally have. It's an unusual blend of a very traditional style with new computer animation techniques. [The Verge]
Read more about the project at Variety and The Verge.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.
-
5 costly cartoons about the national debt
Cartoons Political cartoonists take on the USA's financial hole, rare bipartisan agreement, and Donald Trump and Mike Johnson.
-
Green goddess salad recipe
The Week Recommends Avocado can be the creamy star of the show in this fresh, sharp salad
-
The Biden cover-up: a 'near-treasonous' conspiracy
Talking Point Using 'Trumpian' tactics, the former president's inner circle maintained a conspiracy of silence around his cognitive and physical decline
-
Crypto firm Coinbase hacked, faces SEC scrutiny
Speed Read The Securities and Exchange Commission has also been investigating whether Coinbase misstated its user numbers in past disclosures
-
Starbucks baristas strike over dress code
speed read The new uniform 'puts the burden on baristas' to buy new clothes, said a Starbucks Workers United union delegate
-
Warren Buffet announces surprise retirement
speed read At the annual meeting of Berkshire Hathaway, the billionaire investor named Vice Chairman Greg Abel his replacement
-
Trump calls Amazon's Bezos over tariff display
Speed Read The president was not happy with reports that Amazon would list the added cost from tariffs alongside product prices
-
Markets notch worst quarter in years as new tariffs loom
Speed Read The S&P 500 is on track for its worst month since 2022 as investors brace for Trump's tariffs
-
Tesla Cybertrucks recalled over dislodging panels
Speed Read Almost every Cybertruck in the US has been recalled over a stainless steel panel that could fall off
-
Crafting emporium Joann is going out of business
Speed Read The 82-year-old fabric and crafts store will be closing all 800 of its stores
-
Trump's China tariffs start after Canada, Mexico pauses
Speed Read The president paused his tariffs on America's closest neighbors after speaking to their leaders, but his import tax on Chinese goods has taken effect