Updated

Updated · Creative Bloq · Aug 20

Studio Ghibli Reveals 0 Film Plans, Takes Neutral AI Stance at 85-Year-Old Miyazaki's Studio

Updated

Updated · Creative Bloq · Aug 20

Studio Ghibli Reveals 0 Film Plans, Takes Neutral AI Stance at 85-Year-Old Miyazaki's Studio

Q: What secret project is 85-year-old Hayao Miyazaki hiding, and could it become Studio Ghibli's final masterpiece?

No one outside Hayao Miyazaki appears to know. Studio Ghibli’s CEO, Kenichi Yoda, told Bloomberg that the 85-year-old director still comes to the studio every day, but “only he knows exactly what he’s working on.” The studio itself says it has no confirmed next feature and will not force a film into production without genuine inspiration. The strongest public clue comes from Goro Miyazaki, who has suggested his father’s project looked like “an action-adventure-type movie, nostalgic and reminiscent of the old days.” That has fueled speculation about a return to the spirit of earlier works such as *Castle in the Sky*, but Ghibli has not announced a title, story, or production timeline. As for whether it could become Studio Ghibli’s final masterpiece, that is possible but impossible to verify now. Miyazaki has repeatedly returned after supposed retirements, and Ghibli executives have indicated that *The Boy and the Heron* was not intended to be his last film. What is clear is that the studio’s future remains deeply tied to him, even after Nippon TV’s majority stake purchase, because management says it is preserving Ghibli’s artist-led model rather than pushing franchise expansion or fixed release schedules. So the real answer is that Miyazaki is hiding a project that remains genuinely secret, and if it does emerge as a finished feature, it will likely be judged as a possible final masterpiece only after audiences can finally see it.

3 articles · Updated · Creative Bloq · Aug 20

Three years after Boy and the Heron, Studio Ghibli still has no confirmed next film, and CEO Kenichi Yoda said only Hayao Miyazaki knows what he is currently working on.
Bloomberg's report depicts a studio that resists release schedules, market research and franchise planning, with Yoda saying inspiration cannot be forced and Nippon TV has not pushed expansion since buying a majority stake in 2023.
Goro Miyazaki said Ghibli is neutral on AI rather than opposed to the technology itself, adding the studio largely ignored the viral AI "Ghiblification" trend unless others began making significant money from it.
The picture is of a company still shaped by Miyazaki, now 85 and reportedly at the office daily, yet offering no clear succession plan or roadmap beyond preserving its artistic independence.