Princess Mononoke is one of the first Studio Ghibli films to come to the West and opened the doors to a global market like we have rarely seen in the industry. However, You may not know that one of the people involved in its production was Neil Gaiman, the American writer known for Sandman or American Gods..
But, it is not your fault that you do not know this information, since it was removed from the official credits of the film. In addition, he is better known as a writer of endearing comics, books and sagas than for his work adapting foreign works into English, no matter how successful they are. In this case, Gaiman was involved with Studio Ghibli in 1999 as part of the team for this anime film.
He adapted the screenplay for Princess Mononoke when Miramax released it in US theaters, but his name was removed from the film’s official posters.. At the moment, your contribution can be corroborated through IMDBHowever, what were the reasons for making this omission?
It’s true. (My name was taken off the poster by Miramax execs who were told by Ghibli that there were too many names on the poster. So they kept theirs on and took mine off. Which wasn’t quite what Ghibli had intended.) https://t.co/VGEyIyyaw8
— Neil Gaiman (@neilhimself) April 4, 2022
In a recent tweet, Gaiman explained that his name “was removed from the poster by Miramax execs because Ghibli told them there were too many names on the poster so they kept theirs and removed mine. Something that was not exactly the intention of Studio Ghibli”.
It should be noted that the name of Neil Gaiman was one of the few that was removed from the official publicity of the film, as it featured the prominent actors who did the dubbing for the film’s English voices, such as Billy Crudup, who played the central lead Ashitaka, Claire Danes, who voiced Princess Mononoke, and Gillian Anderson, who played the role of Mono, Mononoke’s stand-in. mother and a huge 300 year old wolf god.
Similarly, the posters acknowledge that the original script and direction for Princess Mononoke were done by Hayao Miyazaki, the director of and founder of Studio Ghibli, as well as the music created by Japanese composer Joe Hisaishi, who have become very popular. Known in animation circles since 1999, Gaiman’s name is nowhere to be found. However, Other less fortunate credits were recorded for posterity, such as that of Miramax co-founder and convicted sex offender, Harvey Weinstein, who appears on the posters as an executive producer..
Why was Neil Gaiman removed from Studio Ghibli’s credits?
The reason behind Miramax’s omission of Neil Gaiman can be explained in one word: Expendable. According to a 2019 tweet from the writer himself, he said that: “the executives looked at all the names, determined that theirs remains, and likewise realized that mine was contractually expendable“. A mere executive decision, at the end of the day.
My biggest secret. (Studio Ghibli asked for some of the Miramax execs to be removed from the poster and credits. The execs looked at all the names, determined that theirs would remain, and realized that mine was contractually expendable.) https://t.co/fm7BRFpp1W
— Neil Gaiman (@neilhimself) August 12, 2019
In addition to removing Gaiman’s name from promotional material for the Studio Ghibli film, Weinstein went to great lengths to alter the film entirely, according to Steve Alpert, the former head of Studio Ghibli’s international division. In Alpert’s book, Sharing a House with the Never-Ending Man: 15 Years at Studio Ghibli, Weinstein insisted that Miyazaki significantly reduce the length of Princess Mononoke, a request that was repeatedly refused..
Considered by many to be one of Miyazaki and Studio Ghibli’s best projects, Princess Mononoke was Japan’s highest-grossing film of 1997, and while it received near-universal praise from critics, the film’s limited theatrical release in the United States United was much less successful, due to the decisions of Weinstein and Miramax.
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