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FIWhen Harvey Weinstein acquired the North American distribution rights to Princess Mononoke (1997), he approached director Hayao Miyazaki and demanded a 45-minute shorter version of the film that he believed would be better suited for American audiences.
However, Miyazaki was still very upset by the heavily cut version of his Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind (1984) that he angrily left the meeting. Several days later, Studio Ghibli producer Toshio Suzuki sent a katana sword to Weinstein’s office with two words engraved into the blade: “No cuts.”
Furious, Weinstein threatened both of their careers, but Miyazaki held the rights and his ground. The film was later released in the US in its intended uncut version. When asked about the incident in an interview, Hayao Miyazaki simply smiled and stated, “I defeated him.”
The legendary director turns 85 years old today.
@filmthusiast
