Neil Gaiman explains why he was cut out of the English movie poster for ‘Princess Mononoke’

April 6, 2022

Neil Gaiman continues to speak out about why he was excluded from the film poster of Studio Ghibli’s “Princess Mononoke” after writing the script for the English-dubbed version in 1999.

The “Sandman” and “American Gods” author revealed in response to a tweet from a fan that his 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.”

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“Princess Mononoke’s” posters for Miramax include the names of Billy Crudup, who voiced the protagonist Ashitaka, and Claire Danes, who played the title character, among other Hollywood actors. The promotional materials for the English adaptation also give credit to Hayao Miyazaki for writing the original screenplay and directing, but Gaiman’s name is left out for his English adaptation.

The author has previously spoken out about not being recognized for his contributions to the Japanese animated epic historical fantasy. In a tweet from August 2019, Gaiman said his “biggest secret” was that Miramax executives removed his name from the movie’s poster and credits instead of their own after realizing his was “contractually expendable.”

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Miramax had originally wanted Quentin Tarantino to pen the English script, but the “Kill Bill” director ultimately turned down the position.

“Princess Mononoke” broke records when it was released in Japan in 1997 but underperformed at the U.S. box office two years later. The film, however, has risen in popularity on DVD and video over the years.

Both the original anime and English-dubbed film can be viewed on HBO Max.

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