Hayao Miyazaki Defeated Harvey Weinstein After Threatening Him Over PRINCESS MONONOKE Cut
You want to hear a great Hayao Miyazaki story!? Of course, you do! As you may or may not know, Harvey Weinstein had no problem going behind the backs of directors and cutting their films. But, one movie he didn’t get a chance to cut was Hayao Miyazaki’s classic anime, Princess Mononoke.
When Disney made the deal with Miyazaki’s Studio Ghibli to distribute the English-language dubs of its films in the United States, they handed Princess Mononoke over to Miramax. When Miyazaki’s producer found out that information, knowing the kind of person that Weinstein was, he sent Weinstein a samurai sword with a note that read “No cuts” attached to the blade. How badass is that!?
But, that warning didn’t stop Weinstein from attacking back. In an upcoming memoir from former Studio Ghibli executive Steve Alpert, “Sharing a House with the Never-Ending Man: 15 Years at Studio Ghibli”, he reveals that Weinstein went bat-shit on him when Miyazaki refused Weinstein’s request to cut the Princess Mononoke runtime from 135 minutes to 90 minutes.
According to Cartoon Brew, Alpert reveals that Weinstein “flew into a rage” and threatened him by saying, “If you don’t get [Miyazaki] to cut the fucking film you will never work in this fucking industry again! Do you fucking understand me? Never!”
The thing is, Miyazaki retained final cut privileges over his movies as part of his deal with Disney, so there was really nothing Weinstein could do. Ghibli resisted the threats and the film was released uncut.
Back in 2010, Miyazaki told The Guardian that Weinstein “bombarded” him with “aggressive attacks” to cut the film. But, Miyazaki stood his ground and said, “I defeated him.” After learning about this story, I love Miyazaki even more!
The report offers another story of how Disney added music, sound effects, and dialogue to the English-language version of Kiki’s Delivery Service. “Alpert pointed this out to a dismayed Disney executive, who hadn’t been aware of the changes. He promptly gave the producer in charge of the English version ‘the kind of verbal lashing that makes grown men cry.’”
Don’t touch Miyazaki’s work!
Via: Cartoon Brew