Miyazaki Already Brainstorming New Film Post-The Boy and the Heron

The assumption has been that The Boy and the Heron would be Miyazaki Hayao’s last film. Now, Ghibli VP Nishioka Junichi suggests otherwise.

By Noah Oskow

The idea of animation maestro Miyazaki Hayao retiring has been a bit of a meme for well over a decade. Think back to 2013, when, at the age of 72 and hot on the heels of the release of his film The Wind Rises, he announced his retirement; his third such declaration. At the time, many reacted with a wry sense of disbelief. Net users in Japan and the world over made comments along the following lines: “How many times is this now?” “I’m looking forward to his next film post-retirement.”

Still, the general assumption has been that Miyazaki’s recently released The Boy and the Heron (君たちはどう生きるか, lit. “How Do You Live”) would be his real-and-actual swan song. After all, the director is now 82 years old, and Heron took him nearly a decade to make.

But you know what they say about assumptions.

Unlike in 1997, 2001, and 2013, Miyazaki has made no actual announcement regarding retiring. And now, following Heron‘s North American premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival, we have word that Miyazaki is already toying with ideas for a potential new film. What exactly does that signify? And what can expect from Ghibli over the coming years? Let’s discuss.

Watch our spoiler-free review of The Boy and the Heron on our YouTube channel.

Miyazaki’s Never-Ending Story

The long-awaited The Boy and the Heron premiered here in Japan back in July, still wrapped under a veil of mystery. Studio Ghibli, the globally beloved animation studio founded by Miyazaki, director Takahata Isao, and frontman Suzuki Toshio, had taken the unprecedented step of producing no marketing materials for the film, save a simplistic teaser poster. This…