Photo courtesy of GKIDS. © 1989 Eiko Kadono/Hayao Miyazaki/Studio Ghibli, N
Following the success of last year’s IMAX release of PRINCESS MONONOKE 4K, IMAX And GKIDS continue their partnership with multiple Studio Ghibli titles planned for 2026. Next up is KIKI’S DELIVERY SERVICE (魔女の宅急便, Majo no Takkyūbin), a landmark of animation from Academy Award-winning director Hayao Miyazaki, which comes to North American cinemas, presented on a brand new 4K restoration exclusively in IMAX theatres beginning March 13, 2026. The film will be shown in both original Japanese language with subtitles and English language dubbed versions.
First released in 1989, KIKI’S DELIVERY SERVICE is one of Director Hayao Miyazaki’s most adored features from Studio Ghibli. The hand-drawn, animated feature, based on the novel by Eiko Kadono, is produced, written, and directed by Studio Ghibli co-founder Hayao Miyazaki, and features a musical score from Miyazaki’s long-time collaborator, the renowned composer Joe Hisaishi. The new 4K remaster highlights the great thought and care put into every frame of the film, celebrating the authentic craftsmanship of Studio Ghibli’s detailed artwork.
The new poster, also revealed today, reflects the studio’s commitment to the animated form at the highest level, highlighting an original piece of concept art from celebrated studio veteran and director of the beloved Studio Ghibli feature WHISPER OF THE HEART, Yoshifumi Kondo.
In December, GKIDS and IMAX announced their continued partnership to exclusively debut Studio Ghibli 4K remasters in its theatres following the highly successful 4K remaster of PRINCESS MONONOKE earlier in 2025, which became the second-highest-grossing vault release ever for IMAX. Studio Ghibli’s own Atsushi Okui, who has been involved in nearly every major Studio Ghibli project since PORCO ROSSO in 1992, continues to oversee the entire process of remastering these beloved Studio Ghibli classics in 4K for the first time. Okui’s most recent credit with the studio was as Director of Digital Imaging on Miyazaki’s Academy Award-winning THE BOY AND THE HERON, which was also the first Studio Ghibli film to screen in IMAX format.
GKIDS handles North American distribution for the famed Studio Ghibli library of films across all theatrical, home video, digital, and streaming platforms. The company has released Studio Ghibli’s most recent films in theaters nationwide, including the Academy Award-winning THE BOY AND THE HERON, the Academy Award-nominated THE TALE OF THE PRINCESS KAGUYA, the Academy Award-nominated WHEN MARNIE WAS THERE, FROM UP ON POPPY HILL and more. Since 2017, GKIDS has produced the annual Ghibli Fest, a monthly nationwide theatrical program of Studio Ghibli film screenings in over 1000 theaters across the country.
About GKIDS, Inc.
GKIDS is the Academy Award-winning producer and distributor of artist-driven and award-winning animation from around the world. After an astounding 13 Best Animated Feature nominations, the company took home the Oscar in 2024 for Hayao Miyazaki and Studio Ghibli’s acclaimed feature, THE BOY AND THE HERON. The company’s previous nominations include THE SECRET OF KELLS in 2010, A CAT IN PARIS and CHICO & RITA in 2012, ERNEST & CELESTINE in 2014, THE TALE OF THE PRINCESS KAGUYA and SONG OF THE SEA in 2015, BOY AND THE WORLD and WHEN MARNIE WAS THERE in 2016, MY LIFE AS A ZUCCHINI in 2017, THE BREADWINNER in 2018, MIRAI in 2019, WOLFWALKERS in 2021, and THE BOY AND THE HERON in 2024.
For more than a decade, GKIDS’ influence on cinema has redefined the perception of animation as an artistic medium on par with live-action film through its stewardship of the Studio Ghibli catalog and by introducing American audiences to the critically-acclaimed films of other master filmmakers from around the world such as Makoto Shinkai (WEATHERING WITH YOU), Mamoru Hosoda (BELLE), Masaaki Yuasa (INU-OH), Tomm Moore (WOLFWALKERS), Hideaki Anno (NEON GENESIS EVANGELION), Nora Twomey (THE BREADWINNER), Satoshi Kon (PERFECT BLUE) and Hiroyuki Imaishi (Promare), among countless others. GKIDS is also the founder and host of ANIMATION IS FILM, the annual LA-based film festival which embraces the highest aspirations of animation as a cinematic art form, and is a vocal advocate for filmmakers who push the boundaries of the medium to its fullest range of artistic expressions.
About Studio Ghibli
Studio Ghibli was founded in 1985 by animation directors Hayao Miyazaki and Isao Takahata and is one of the most successful and well-respected animation studios in the world. Cultivating a creative force of talented directors, animators, and storytellers under the revered brilliance of Miyazaki and Takahata, Studio Ghibli’s films have been praised for their originality, dazzling animation, and epic storytelling. The films have become a beloved part of Japanese popular culture, and have garnered worldwide acclaim from audiences and critics alike. Hayao Miyazaki’s SPIRITED AWAY won the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature of 2002 and in 2005 Miyazaki was named one of “the most influential people” by Time Magazine.