The Best ’80s Sci-Fi Fantasy Epic Getting A Sequel?

Miyazaki and Ghibli fans are always hoping for more, which is why everyone is getting hyped about a scene in a new documentary where Miyazaki is painting a scene from his manga Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind, which had a feature film adaptation in 1984.

However, the entirety of the manga wasn’t adapted in that film, leading fans to speculate that Miyazaki may be gearing up to return to that world through the medium of animation.

Rumors said that The Boy and the Heron, which is currently playing in theaters, would be Miyazaki’s final film. However, Miyazaki has already said he’s “retiring” twice, with the first time being after Princess Mononoke and the second time after The Wind Rises in 2013.

Miyazaki actually didn’t even say he was officially retiring this time around, so the fact that he’s painting Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind scenes could mean he has another film in mind.

The documentary in question was in the latest episode of the Japanese NHK station Professional-Shigoto no Ryugi series, which follows different people in the entertainment world.

The new episode followed Miyazaki and the development of The Boy and the Heron and ended with the scene of Miyazaki working on the Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind painting.

It certainly seems like that scene is leading us to believe there is more to come.

In the scene, Miyazaki says, “It’s a pain, coming back to this world,” so it’s clear that he isn’t simply painting the Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind watercolor just for the fun of it.

The painting seems to depict the titular Nausicaa, who is the heroine of the film. In addition to writing and drawing the manga, Miyazaki also directed and produced the film adaptation before founding Studio Ghibli after its release.

In fact, Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind was the very first original anime film that Miyazaki directed, so returning to that IP as his true “final” film would certainly be a full-circle moment and a fitting end to his incredible animation legacy.

Miyazaki, as depicted in the documentary and as fans have seen in interviews over the years, is certainly someone who seems to have a need to work. It wouldn’t be surprising if he wanted to make a full adaptation of his beloved manga before retiring for real.

In any case, anything that remotely suggests that Miyazaki is going to bring the world another film is inevitably going to be latched on to.

Also, the fact remains that there were likely plenty of other scenes to end the documentary with, so you may as well tease a new Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind film if there’s even a remote possibility it could happen.

In the meantime, you can check out the latest Studio Ghibli film, The Boy and the Heron, in theaters now.

Source: Sora News 24