The Curious Case Of My Neighbor Totoro’s Dubbing

Studio Ghibli is well known globally as one of the best anime studios of all time. Creating memorable movies and characters and transporting viewers into a whole new magical world. One of such characters,Totoro, has become a cultural icon. The cute giant furry creature can be seen in stores and shirts around the world. He is loved by kids and adults alike, and as Studio Ghibli’s My Neighbor Totoro has exploded in popularity since its original 1988 Japanese release, he has become part of the studio’s logo. But little known to many fans, My Neighbor Totoro actually had two different versions of the popular English dubbed film, one by Fox Studios and another through Disney.

My Neighbor Totoro first released in 1988 in Japan under the title Tonari no Totoro. The movie was quickly adapted for Western audience, and quickly after in 1989, Streamline Pictures adapted the movie for English audience. This was the case for quite some time, then in 1993, Fox Studios acquired the rights to do its own exclusive dub, and started pumping out production for home video. However, at first, My Neighbor Totoro didn’t do as well in America, due to lack of advertising and possibly cultural reasons. But it did have a cult following of sorts, and most of the audience was young.

Fox Studios released the DVD with only two years of rights left in 2002, hoping to milk the most out of the movie before the end of the contract. In 2014 a new company picked up the rights to the legendary film, Walt Disney Studios. Disney was already familiar with Studio Ghibli’s work, already re-dubbing Kiki’s Delivery Service, and wanted to do the same with Totoro. So, Disney completely redubbed all of the film, with well known voice actors and Scooby Doo’s voice actor Frank Welker playing Totoro.

While many argue that the original Fox Studios dub sounds and feels better with the story, many have never seen it and unfortunately never will. The DVD version of the original English dub has become rare due to it only being in production for two years, and is nearly impossible to find new. Regardless, My Neighbor Totoro is a fantastic film and is a great watch no matter which version you sit down to enjoy. If you have not seen it you should find a copy, sub or dubbed, and get transported into Studio Ghibli’s magical world.