Princess Mononoke isn’t only one of Studio Ghibli‘s significantly consequential films, but was also one of the most successful film at the Japanese box office at the time of its original 1997 release. As of now, the cult classic hit continues its top-ranking existence as the eighth highest-grossing film of all time at the Japanese box office. Two other iconic films – Spirited Away and Howl’s Moving Castle – accompany the 1997 Hayao Miyazaki directorial and Ghibli masterpiece in the Top 10 grossing films at the Japanese box office all time at #2 and #9, respectively.

With OpenAI recently launching a new image generator that allows existing images to be reimagined as their Ghibli-style counterparts, a heavy debate surrounding the hand-drawn and AI art pieces has ensued. In the same breath as the Ghibli AI trend climbed new heights of online virality, esteemed filmmaker Hayao Miyazaki‘s years-old opinion echoed through social media.

Miyazaki’s resurfaced take established that he was “disgusted” by AI’s interference in art, believing it to be “an insult to life itself.” His old comments further spurred others to counter the entire Ghibli AI craze and accusing the new development of ripping off existing artworks.

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Studio Ghibli’s Princess Mononoke cracks IMAX box office record with all-new 4K restoration

To anime lovers’ relief, new box office numbers coming from the US reinforced meticulously created art pieces’ supremacy. Last week, Studio Ghibli’s Princess Mononoke secured its 4K restoration through an IMAX debut in North American theatres. The re-release distributed by GKIDS grossed over $4 million box office earnings in its opening weekend (March 28-30), ranking at #6.

Princess Mononoke 4K restoration screening, which celebrates Studio Ghibli’s 40th anniversary, amassed an estimated earning of $4,004,482 over the weekend. Single day North America box office estimations of the anime film were as follows: $2,000,591 (Friday), $1,083,891 (Saturday) and $920,000 (Sunday). On top of that, Princess Mononoke’s IMAX debut has brought in over $4.1 million in North America, making it the biggest IMAX domestic opening ever for a local language title, per Collider.

The remastered version is being screened in 347 theatres across the US and Canada. It remains to be seen if other international markets will also be following with the 4K restoration (overseen by longtime Studio Ghibli collaborator Atsushi Okui) screening debuts.

Back in 2016, Studio Ghibli’s anime masterpiece secured a previous re-release for its 20th anniversary. The English dub feature star-studded talents of Gillian Anderson, Billy Crudup, Claire Danes, Jada Pinkett Smith, and Billy Bob Thornton and Minnie Driver.

Princess Mononoke IMAX distributor celebrate Miyazaki, Studio Ghibli over AI

GKIDS, Studio Ghibli films‘ North American distributor, is making the most of the re-release opportunity to weigh in on the Ghibli AI craze. “In a time when technology tries to replicate humanity, we are thrilled that audiences value a theatrical experience that respects and celebrates Hayao Miyazaki and Studio Ghibli’s masterpiece in all its cinematic hand-drawn glory,” Chance Huskey, VP of distribution for GKIDS, said in a statement, per Variety.

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Akihiko Yamashita, Howl’s Moving Castle’s supervising animator who spent two years working on the film, explained Academy Award-winning director Miyazaki’s working process in a 2024 interview. “He is somebody who actually draws himself. From the layout to the storyboards — everything — he draws it himself. And let’s say a key animator has drawn some animation. If he doesn’t like it, then he will change it and draw a rough drawing. Then, the key animators and other animators have to bring that to the final stage,” he said.

The animator added, “I really have no idea how many pages of drawings there were or how many cels we drew. I just know that we worked a huge amount and we drew a huge amount.”

Proudly bearing a high Rotten Tomatoes score of 93%, the Studio Ghibli fantasy movie is streaming on Netflix and Max (select regions). Princess Mononoke’s official synopsis reads, “Inflicted with a deadly curse, the young warrior Ashitaka heads west in search of a cure. There, he stumbles into a bitter conflict between Lady Eboshi, the proud people of Iron Town, and the enigmatic Princess Mononoke, a young girl raised by wolves, who will stop at nothing to prevent the humans from destroying her home and the forest spirits and animal gods who live there.”