Hayao Miyazaki movies in order
Twelve films across forty-four years, and most of them have no villain at all.
Updated 6 August 2026 · 12 titles tracked
Nothing Miyazaki directed is a sequel to anything else, so there is no required order. What there is instead is a wrong place to start, and a lot of people find it: opening with The Wind Rises or Porco Rosso and concluding that Ghibli is not for them.
One thing worth clearing up first — "Miyazaki" and "Studio Ghibli" are not the same list. Grave of the Fireflies, Whisper of the Heart, The Tale of the Princess Kaguya and When Marnie Was There are Ghibli films by other directors. This guide is the twelve Miyazaki directed himself.
Miyazaki films, in a suggested starting order
An entry path rather than release order. Toggle on the filmography page.
- 1Spirited Away2001 · Major work
- 2My Neighbor Totoro1988 · Major work
- 3Princess Mononoke1997 · Major work
- 4Howl's Moving Castle2004 · Major work
- 5Kiki's Delivery Service1989 · Major work
- 6Castle in the Sky1986 · Major work
- 7Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind1984 · Major work
- 8The Boy and the Heron2023 · Major work
- 9Porco Rosso1992
- 10Ponyo2008
- 11The Wind Rises2013 · Major work
- 12Lupin III: The Castle of Cagliostro1979
Start with Spirited Away
It won the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature and held the Japanese box-office record for nineteen years, and both of those happened for the same reason: it works immediately on adults and children without being aimed at either.
The alternative opener is My Neighbor Totoro, which has almost no plot and no antagonist. That is not a weakness — it is the clearest example of what he does instead of conflict. If Totoro clicks, everything else will.
Then the big three
Princess Mononoke (1997) is the violent one, and the one that refuses to give either side of its war a clean moral case. Howl's Moving Castle (2004) is structurally the loosest and visually the richest. Kiki's Delivery Service (1989) looks like a children's film about a young witch and is actually about creative burnout.
Any order. They share nothing but a sensibility.
The two that predate the studio
Lupin III: The Castle of Cagliostro (1979) is his feature debut, made for an existing anime franchise six years before Ghibli existed. It is a caper, and barely feels like his.
Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind (1984) also predates the studio — Ghibli was founded on the strength of its success in 1985. It is usually counted as a Ghibli film anyway, and it is where the ecological themes start.
Leave these until later
The Wind Rises (2013) is a biographical drama about the engineer who designed the Zero fighter. It is excellent and it is nothing like the rest — no magic, adult throughout, and it was announced as his retirement.
Ponyo (2008) is aimed squarely at five-year-olds and drawn entirely by hand with no CG at all. Porco Rosso (1992) is his most personal film and his least accessible entry point. Save all three.
The Boy and the Heron (2023) is the un-retirement — seven years of work, a second Oscar, at eighty-two. It rewards knowing the rest of the filmography, so do not open with it either.
Common questions
What order should I watch Miyazaki movies in?
Any order — none of them connect. Start with Spirited Away or My Neighbor Totoro, then Princess Mononoke, Howl's Moving Castle and Kiki's Delivery Service. Leave The Wind Rises, Porco Rosso and Ponyo for later.
Which Miyazaki film should I watch first?
Spirited Away. It won Best Animated Feature, works on adults and children equally, and is the most complete introduction to what he does.
How many films did Hayao Miyazaki direct?
Twelve features, from The Castle of Cagliostro (1979) to The Boy and the Heron (2023). Studio Ghibli has released more than that — the others were directed by Isao Takahata, Hiromasa Yonebayashi and Miyazaki's son Gorō.
Is Grave of the Fireflies a Miyazaki film?
No. It is a Studio Ghibli film directed by Isao Takahata, released in 1988 on a double bill with My Neighbor Totoro.