Japan’s Toho buys Ghibli animation distributor GKIDS to further overseas growth FilmyMeet

People take a picture of Godzilla’s head at Shinjyuku Toho building at the Kabukicho district in Tokyo
| Photo Credit: Koji Sasahara

Toho Co, the Japanese creator of the Godzilla movie franchise, will acquire the U.S. distributor of Studio Ghibli’s famed animated films, it said on Wednesday, to help drive overseas expansion. The acquisition comes amid a surge in global popularity for Japanese entertainment, and fits with Toho’s multi-year growth strategy centred on animation and overseas markets.

New York-based GKIDS, which distributed Ghibli’s Oscar-winning The Boy and the Heron, will become a wholly owned subsidiary of Toho after the deal, whose terms were not disclosed in statements from both companies.

“We are truly thrilled to be joining forces with the esteemed and storied Toho,” GKIDS, which has distributed 13 animated films nominated for Oscars, said in a statement, citing founder Eric Beckman and president Dave Jesteadt.

Toho’s own Godzilla Minus One, a hit in overseas markets, took home an Oscar for visual effects in March, while Shogun, a historical epic filmed mostly in Japanese, won a record number of Emmy Awards last month for a single season of drama. Japan set up a committee last month to promote its entertainment industry, which was worth 12.9 trillion yen ($86.43 billion) in 2021, ranking third globally after the United States and China, the cabinet office said.

GKIDS manages the film catalogue of Ghibli, the studio of renowned Japanese director Hayao Miyazaki, in North America. In March, it inked a deal with Warner Bros. Discovery to extend the U.S. streaming rights to Ghibli films.