Studio Ghibliis a Japanese animation studio based in Koganei, Tokyo. It was founded in 1985 and has spawned some of the best animated films ever made, includingSpirited Away, My Neighbor Totoro, andHowl’s Moving Castle. Studio Ghibli has won countless awards and even established a theme parkcalled Ghibli Parkthat opened in November 2022 to honor all the work done by the studio. The popularity of the animation piqued the interest of Disney, and they eventually became a distributor of their films, making Ghibli content more available in the West.
Any fans of animation will be familiar with the classic argument of “subs over dubs,” which argues that all anime should be watched in its original Japanese language to have the best experience. However, some fans argue that dubs are better than subs. Wherever you sit in this argument, there is a great call for English dubbing of anime, and while a great many dubs suffer from poor translation or just bad lining up lines with animation, there are quite a few Studio Ghibli English dubs that deserve our recognition. Here are the top 10.
10Castle in the Sky
Castle in the Skyhas a massive following, and there’s a good reason for it. Hayao Miyazaki’s steampunk masterpiece tells the story of young orphan Sheeta, who escapes her kidnapper thanks to the magic crystal she has. She encounters fellow orphan Pazu, and they join forces to discover Laputa, the castle in the sky, all while pirates are aiming to retrieve Laputa’s treasures, including Sheeta’s crystal. The dialogue of the English dub flows naturally and includes the voice acting talents of Anna Paquin, Mark Hamill, and Cloris Leachman. However, the choice to cast James Van Der Beek as Pazu was poor as he is too old to voice a prepubescent boy.
Related:Studio Ghibli: The Biggest Names in English Dubs, Ranked
One of the lesser known Ghibli films isPom Poko, which tells the story of shape-shifting Japanese racoon-dogs, ortanukis, whose territory is threatened by local humans. The tanuki must use their magic to help them save their land from destruction. While the English dub does not match up precisely like many of the others on this list, the voice acting makes up for it. Featuringactors like J.K. Simmons, Jonathan Taylor Thomas, and Clancy Brown,Pom Pokois a funny film that certainly deserves more attention.
8The Wind Rises
Serving as Miyazaki’s final Ghibli film before retirement,The Wind Risestells the story of Jiro Horikoshi, whose love of flight inspires him to create the A6M World War II fighter plane. A visual feast,The Wind Rises' English dub is an almost word-for-word translation, featuring the acting talents of Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Emily Blunt, who lead the way with some wonderful voice-acting. WhileThe Wind Risesis not the most exciting of films, its slow-moving story-telling still reveals -life Jiro Horikoshi.
7Spirited Away
This Oscar-winning film bridged the gap between Eastern and Western audiences. Considered one of the best-animated films of all time,Spirited Awaytells the story of young Chihiro, who finds herself trapped in the spirit world after her parents are transformed into pigs. With the help of Haku, she must work with Yubaba to try to make her way back to the human world and save her parents. The English dub ofSpirited Awayfeatured one massive difference at the end of the film when Chihiro must pick her parents out of the pigs shown to her: in the original dub, if she can’t pick them out, Chihiro must eat them. This change was arguably made to make the film more kid-friendly, which it no doubt achieves.
Related:12 Studio Ghibli Movies That Are Perfect for Kids
6Kiki’s Delivery Service
Kiki’s Delivery Serviceis the perfect cottagecore anime about a young witch named Kiki, who is adjusting to new life in the big city alongside her talking cat Jiji to complete her witch training. Kiki sets up a flying courier service, but trouble strikes when her self-doubt causes her to lose her magic. Kiki must build up her confidence to get her magic back. The English cast features a young Kristen Dunst who does the character perfect justice. That being said, the English dub was criticized for having Kiki regain the ability to understand Jiji, which was later changed back to the original version where Kiki no longer needs to talk to Jiji.
5Grave of the Fireflies
One of Studio Ghibli’s first successes released in 1988 wasGrave of the Fireflies.The film follows young teen Seita, who must care for his younger sister Setsuko during World War II after they are separated from their parents. While this film is quite dark, it is one of the more underrated Ghibli films. The English dub features a subtle and terse script with few words, which allows viewers to focus more on the story without getting lost in typical over-the-top animated voice acting.
Ponyofollows the adventures of a goldfish princess who encounters Sosuke, a boy on land who gives her the name of Ponyo. When Ponyo’s father drags her back to the ocean, her determination breaks her out and, in the process, she spills a collection of magical elixirs, placing Sosuke’s village in danger. While there are few glaring differences in the English dub, including Sosuke calling his parents “Mom” and “Dad” rather than their names, the cast features Cate Blanchett, Liam Neeson, and the late Betty White.
3Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind
After an apocalypse devastated the world’s ecosystem, what remains of the human race must survive in a toxic jungle inNausicaa of the Valley of the Wind. Young Nausicaa inhabits the Valley of the Wind and has the ability to communicate with the large insects that populate the dangerous jungle. With veteran Lord Yupa taking Nausicaa under his wing, Nausicaa must work to bring peace back to the planet. This visual feast features the talents of Alison Lohman, Patrick Stewart, Uma Thurman and Shia LeBeouf in the English dub. Much praise went to Lohman for her portrayal of the confident and intelligent Nausicaa.
2Porco Rosso
Set in Italy during the 1930s,Porco Rossotells the story of the eponymous pilot, who braves the sky to get rid of the sky pirates hovering above the Adriatic Sea. While Porco Rosso was a famous flying ace in World War I, he magically was transformed into a pig. Rosso enlists the help of mechanic Fio Piccolo and his longtime friend Madame Gina. The English dub cast is led by Michael Keaton, Susan Egan, and Kimberly Paisley-Williams, a cast that brought their all to this Ghibli gem.
1Howl’s Moving Castle
Considered one of the best anime dubs of all time,Howl’s Moving Castleis a phenomenal film and the english dub is arguably better than the original Japanese dub. Based on the novel of the same name,Howl’s Moving Castletells the story of young Sophie who is cursed by a witch to look old and while searching for the witch, she stumbles upon the wizard Howl and his moving castle. Featuring big names like Christian Bale, Lauren Bacall, Billy Crystal, and Emily Mortimer, the English dub not only lines up perfectly, but translates well to the original and has its very own charm thanks to the cast.
