Ghibli Grabs the Oscar, Disney Drops the Ball

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Miyazaki takes an Osar

Credit: Edited by Inside the Magic

From Ryan Gosling going full Ken in his pink ensemble to John Cena showing up in the buff on stage, it’s safe to say that there were a lot of surprises at this year’s Oscars. However, one perhaps not-so-surprise might have just sparked a fire under the Walt Disney Company as the beloved studio just lost yet another Academy Award.

A boy holding a bow and arrow with a heron behind him
Credit: Studio Ghibli

2023 was what many fans considered Disney’s “Flop Era,” and the studio’s performance last year definitely proved that fact at the box office. Competing with Across the Spider-Verse (2023), Nimona (2023), and Robot Dreams (2023), Disney and Pixar’s Elemental (2023) was the Mouse’s only Oscar lifeline for Best Animated Feature. Yet, it lost to a certain Japanese rival.

Related: “NOT Disney” Trends Online as Users Share Growing Frustrations With Studio

Studio Ghibli took home the gold last night with Hayao Miyazaki’s The Boy and the Heron (2023), leaving Disney and Marvel in the dust. It was a well-deserved victory for the iconic anime studio but a loss that doesn’t reflect well on the century-year-old animation juggernaut.

Disney Loses Another Academy Award

@oscars

‘The Boy and the Heron’ secures the Oscar for Best Animated Feature Film! Congratulations, Hayao Miyazaki and Toshio Suzuki! #oscars #oscars2024 #animation #animatedfeature #academyawards #theboyandtheheron #hayaomiyazaki #chrishemsworth anyataylorjoy #studioghibli

♬ original sound – The Oscars – The Oscars

While the win from Studio Ghibli might not come as a massive surprise to some, especially given Disney’s track record last year, this is a big blow that could potentially hurt the company. While Disney did take home five Oscars, primarily those given to Poor Things (2023) released by the Disney-owned Searchlight Pictures, this isn’t the first time the studio lost to Miyazaki.

Related: Disney Is Nominated for 20 Oscars, but Will They Take Home the Gold?

The imaginations behind films like My Neighbor Totoro (1988) and Kiki’s Delivery Service (1989) blew Disney out of the water in 2003 with Spirited Away, which certainly took many Disney fans by surprise at the time (even with John Lasseter’s connections to Miyazaki). Given the studio’s history and pedigree for gorgeous animation and emotional storytelling, Disney and the other entries definitely had more than a bit of competition.

Disney CEO Bob Iger looking worried in front of the Walt Disney Company building.
Credit: Inside The Magic

In light of recent developments, Disney CEO Bob Iger is tightening the leash on the studio, going as far as outright shelving projects Disney “no longer believes in.” A shift in leadership might be the wake-up call the studio needs to save face, but its fall from grace will dramatically change how things are done, especially after this significant loss.

Related: Academy Awards Snub ‘Oppenheimer,’ Reward Worst Marvel Film

Miyazaki’s tale about a grieving boy’s magical journey with the titular talking heron was easily a standout contender at this year’s Oscars, but the loss also struck another blow against the Walt Disney Company as it hasn’t won Best Animated Feature since Encanto came out in 2021. After multiple consecutive losses for a category it previously dominated, Disney might be feeling the heat.

Do you think Disney recover from yet another Oscar loss? Let Inside the Magic know in the comments down below!

 

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