Netflix has acquired Japanese animation house Studio Ghibli’s latest film Earwig and the Witch to launch internationally (excluding Japan and the US) on November 18.
Studio Ghibli’s first fully 3D/CG-animated feature stars a young orphan who discovers magic after learning she was adopted by a selfish witch. Based on Diana Wynne Jones’s novel of the same name, the family-friendly movie premiered on Japanese pubcaster NHK in December 2020, and the agreement with Netflix marks its first international foray.
Thanks to a deal it inked in 2020, Netflix now has the international streaming rights (excluding Japan and the US) to all of Studio Ghibli’s 22 films, including family-friendly titles such as Spirited Away, My Neighbor Totoro and Princess Mononoke. The acquisition has been a boon for the SVOD, which said in a release that more than 55 million households worldwide have watched at least one of these titles.
HBO Max currently has the US rights to Studio Ghibli’s film catalogue.