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The English cast of Hayao Miyazaki’s The Boy and the Heron includes Robert Pattinson enjoying the time of his life. He’s but one of several big names in the beautiful film’s dub. Christian Bale, Florence Pugh, Dave Bautista, and several other headliners lend their voices to the experience. While a list of A-listers once drew in an audience, it often scares away modern crowds. As expected from Miyazaki, The Boy and the Heron breaks the mold.
Actors and Voice Actors Have a Mixed History
Unlike The Boy and the Heron, this year’s Super Mario Bros. Movie made waves when it revealed its cast. Chris Pratt, Charlie Day, Seth Rogen, Anya Taylor-Joy, and Jack Black earned laughter from viewers before and during the film. Many argued that a cast of voice actors, possibly including longtime Mario star Charles Martinet, would be preferable. It entered a conversation fans and studios have been shouting past each other for years. Voice actors, like those who star in video games and anime dubs, tend to only become famous among devotees. Excluding rare exceptions such as Critical Role, most can only name a few voice performers, while even your grandma would recognize a few names from the cast of The Boy and the Heron. That would usually imply stunt casting, but each performer turns in a near-note-perfect performance.
Most American animated movies have a cast like The Boy and the Heron, though few feature Robert Pattinson. While anime and TV shows typically bring in booth-trained pros, Disney and Dreamworks prefer name recognition over specific skill sets. Video games are often worse, replacing beloved talent with more famous icons. Disney fired the starting gun with Aladdin, which elevated its humor with Robin Williams’ excellent performance. Today, films like Pinocchio drag out-of-place stars into a booth to ruin familiar characters. The Boy and the Heron cast only a couple of prominent voice actors, but the name recognition served a new purpose.
The Boy and the Heron Put Performance First
Far be it from me to denigrate every celebrity ever used to add name recognition to an animated project. Some of them shocked the world and nailed their part in the story, but that isn’t the usual expectation. The Boy and the Heron is the first example I’ve seen in which every big name delivered. I’ll be the thousandth person to celebrate Robert Pattinson’s performance as the Gray Heron. The sharp, bestial, ominous voice he adopts for the role rattles the bones and belies a bristling blend of sinister intent and playful observation. Ditto Dave Bautista, stepping into a more familiar intimidating noble type with aplomb. Florence Pugh’s Kiriko comes across as a full-fledged person halfway through her first line and only gets more compelling as she sticks around. It’s as enjoyable as it is surprising.
Part of what made Pattinson’s performance so impressive is that it came out of nowhere. His voice is reminiscent of Willem Dafoe’s take on the Green Goblin. That fact becomes more fascinating as Dafoe is also in the film, occupying a much shorter role. We got what we expected from Dafoe, Mark Hamil, and veteran voice performers like Melora Harte. The film’s marketing cleverly hid the actors’ names behind their first appearances. I know many viewers who stepped into the theater without any knowledge of the cast. You could time the shocked reactions with a stopwatch as the credits rolled. The celebrity names aren’t there to draw a crowd. They’re cast as well as they would be in any other project. They do, however, provide a moment of glee as the audience discovers their favorite character was brought to life with the help of a beloved performer.
The Boy and the Heron might be the first step in Robert Pattinson’s new career path, but it could also just be a great animated film. Studio Ghibli demonstrated the best way to bring veteran voice actors and bigger names together. The answer would have been obvious, but it’s a difference of intent. Most modern animated projects lead with the cast. Instead, The Boy and the Heron found notable performers who’d be perfect for the role and led with their stellar work. We may never return to the era of early animated films or transition to the anime method, but we could see new developments like this. The Boy and the Heron delivers a cast as impressive as it is surprising.
