GKIDS released the film on BD/DVD on July 9. Image courtesy of GKIDS
© 2023 Studio Ghibli
Entertainment news website Variety reported on Wednesday that Studio Ghibli and Hayao Miyazaki's animated film The Boy and the Heron will begin streaming on HBO's Max streaming platform (formerly HBO Max) in the United States on September 6.
Deadline reported in March that the film would stream “exclusively” on Max.
The rest of Studio Ghibli's catalog is also available on Max in the US.
The film will stream on Netflix globally outside of the US and Japan. The licensing is part of a new deal between Netflix, Goodfellas and GKIDS. An additional 22 Studio Ghibli titles will continue to stream globally on Netflix as part of the deal.
GKIDS released The Boy and the Heron as a Blu-ray Disc/4K UHD combo pack, Blu-ray Disc/DVD combo pack, and a limited edition Steelbook release (with Blu-ray and 4K UHD) on July 9. The film is also available for purchase on-demand on all major digital platforms.
The film won Best Animated Feature Film at the 96th Academy Awards on March 10. It was Miyazaki's second film to win after Spirited Away in 2003. Other major awards included Best Film – Animated at the 81st Golden Globe Awards and Animation of the Year at the 47th Annual Japan Academy Prize, among others.
The film opened in Japan in July 2023 and sold 1.003 million tickets and earned approximately US$13.2 million in its first three days of release in Japan.
The film debuted at number one in its opening weekend at the United States box office, grossing $12,836,313 in its first three days. Variety reported that the film was the “first original anime feature” to top the US box office.
Source: Variety (Todd Spangler)