AI Reveals What My Neighbor Totoro Could Look Like In Real Life & It's Magical

Released in 1988, Hayao Miyazaki's "My Neighbor Totoro" became such a massive hit for Studio Ghibli that the titular character went on to become the official mascot of Japan's top animation house. The big fluffy tree spirit is known all around the world today, an iconic symbol arguably on par with Mickey Mouse. Thanks to AI, fans of the film have been able to see Totoro like never before: YouTuber AI_Anime_Labo gave Miyazaki's classic the AI treatment and shared the stunning results.

In the YouTube Shorts clip, we get a close look at not only the big Totoro that everyone knows and loves, but also the smaller members of his tribe. There are also some stunning glimpses of the Japanese countryside, where the film is set: It follows two young sisters after they move to the country with their father to be closer to the hospital that's treating their ill mother. It's here that Satsuki and Mei meet Totoro and a host of other magical creatures, including the soot spirits, which look adorable in the AI clip.

Catbus from "My Neighbor Totoro," who is undoubtedly one of the best Studio Ghibli characters ever dreamed up, is exactly what he sounds like — half cat, half bus. In one beloved scene, Satsuki and Mei stand at a rainy bus stop waiting for their father to return. When Mei falls asleep, Totoro appears and reveals his presence to Satsuki for the first time. Because Totoro only has a leaf to keep himself dry, Satsuki offers him an umbrella, which he's delighted about. Just when it seems as though the bus is coming, the Catbus shows up instead and Totoro gets on. Later in the film, when Mei goes missing, Totoro calls on the Catbus to help reunite the sisters.

There are two different versions of the Catbus in AI_Anime_Labo's video, and they're very different. One is simply an actual yellow bus with a cat design, not too dissimilar to something you'd see at the Ghibli Park in Japan, where Catbus shuttles began operating in 2024. The other, however, is way too scary for Ghibli — AI revealed what a more authentic Catbus would look like, and it's nightmare fuel. The intimidating creature looks like the Cheshire Cat from "Alice in Wonderland" if someone made it the villain in a horror movie. With its sharp teeth and manic eyes, it's definitely not something you'd ever see in a Hayao Miyazaki film.

Studio Ghibli co-founder Hayao Miyazaki is not a fan of artificial intelligence being used in animation, and he made that perfectly clear during an awkward presentation at the Dwango Artificial Intelligence Laboratory in Tokyo back in 2016. Miyazaki and his long-time producer Toshio Suzuki were shown a character that had been taught to move using an AI program created at Dwango. The endgame for the developers was to create authentic-looking human movement, but the results were still way off at this point in time.

In a clip from the meeting, Miyazaki can be seen watching on as Dwango's AI creation drags itself across the ground using its head as though it was a limb. It's a jarring, creepy image. Miyazaki was not impressed with what he saw, and he made sure the people behind the program knew that. "I am utterly disgusted," the anime veteran said. "If you really want to create creepy stuff, you can go ahead and do it. I would never wish to incorporate this technology into my work at all. I strongly feel that this is an insult to life itself."

While it's clear that he has no love for AI, he's not necessarily against CGI — that's a false fact about Miyazaki that many people think is true. In fact, Miyazaki has utilized CGI in his own films and he even made an all-CGI short called "Boro the Caterpillar" for the Ghibli Museum in 2018.