Few animated films become less relevant with age.

Princess Mononoke certainly hasn’t.

Hayao Miyazaki’s epic fantasy is returning to North American cinemas from 26 to 30 September 2026 as part of Studio Ghibli Fest, presented in its 4K remastered version.

For fans who have never seen Ashitaka, San and the Forest Spirit on a cinema screen, this is a particularly good excuse.

A clarification about the 4K version

The 4K restoration itself is not brand new to 2026.

GKIDS first brought the remaster to North American IMAX theatres in 2025 as part of Studio Ghibli’s 40th anniversary celebrations.

The remaster was directly overseen by longtime Studio Ghibli imaging specialist Atsushi Okui.

What is new now is its place in the 2026 Studio Ghibli Fest programme.

When is Princess Mononoke screening?

GKIDS has scheduled dubbed screenings for 26, 27 and 30 September, while Japanese-language screenings with subtitles are scheduled for 28 and 29 September.

Exact cinema participation naturally depends on location.

The broader 2026 Ghibli Fest lineup also includes films such as Castle in the Sky, Only Yesterday, Tales from Earthsea and the 25th-anniversary presentation of Spirited Away.

Why Mononoke still hits so hard

Released in Japan in 1997, Princess Mononoke refuses the comfortable moral simplicity of many fantasy stories.

Ashitaka enters a conflict between expanding human industry and the gods and creatures of an ancient forest, but Miyazaki is not interested in dividing everyone neatly into heroes and villains.

Lady Eboshi destroys nature, yet protects people society has discarded.

San fights for the forest, yet her hatred threatens to consume her.

The natural world itself is beautiful, violent and completely uninterested in fitting into human ideas about goodness.

Nearly three decades later, those tensions have lost none of their power.

And then there is Joe Hisaishi’s score.

Some films simply deserve speakers much larger than the ones attached to a television.

Princess Mononoke returns to cinemas from 26–30 September.