Ponyo (Official Studio Ghibli) is an animated feature film directed by Hayao Miyazaki, released in 2008.
In this article, we’ll take a look back at the characters and voice actors of “Ponyo,” exploring their unique charms and roles in the story. What kind of characters were in “Ponyo”?
Please be aware that the following text contains unmarked spoilers.
*This article is an English translation of the original Japanese article, “【崖の上のポニョ】登場人物＆声優情報一覧とキャラクター考察そして人物相関図“
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“Ponyo” Main Characters and Voice Actors List
| Name | Age | Voice Actor |
|---|---|---|
 Ponyo | 5 | Noah Cyrus |
 Sōsuke | 5 | Frankie Jonas |
 Lisa | 25 | Tina Fey |
 Kōichi | 30 | Matt Damon |
 Fujimoto | 100+ | Liam Neeson |
 Granmamare | ? | Cate Blanchett |
 Toki | ? | Lily Tomlin |
Character & Voice Actor Profiles and Analysis
Ponyo | Voice Actor: Noah Cyrus
Ponyo’s Basic Information
The protagonist of the story, a five-year-old fish girl. She had the beautiful name “Brunhilde,” but she grew very fond of the name “Ponyo,” which Sōsuke gave her because she looked “ponyo-ponyo” (soft and squishy), and has called herself Ponyo ever since.
The story begins with Ponyo escaping from her father, Fujimoto. She unintentionally washes ashore and is rescued by Sōsuke. By licking the blood from a cut on Sōsuke’s thumb, she gains the power to become a half-human, half-fish creature.
She also develops a great love for ham after Sōsuke gives her some.
Ponyo’s Astonishing Determination
Although rescued by Sōsuke, Ponyo is unfortunately taken back by Fujimoto. However, driven by the sole desire to see her beloved Sōsuke again, she plans another escape and reappears before him on a giant wave.
Because it’s an animation and Ponyo is drawn so cutely, your first impression might be just “Wow!”, but if you imagine it in a live-action context, it’s quite an extraordinary scene.
In fact, during the pre-production of “Ponyo,” director Miyazaki would blast Wagner’s “Ride of the Valkyries” in his studio (Source: “How Ponyo was born(ポニョはこうして生まれた, in Japanese)”).
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Perhaps if we play “Ride of the Valkyries” in our heads when watching that scene, we can better understand its epic scale and the depth of Ponyo’s determination.
Sōsuke | Voice Actor: Frankie Jonas
Sōsuke’s Basic Information
The other protagonist of the story, a five-year-old boy. He attends the Himawari Nursery School. He is also on good terms with the elderly residents of the “Himawari House” daycare center (where his mother, Lisa, works), which is adjacent to the nursery.
Although he is in a somewhat “non-standard” situation, calling his parents by their first names, Lisa and Kōichi, he has a strong sense of independence. He is a fine boy who steadfastly tries to keep his promise to Ponyo: “I will protect you.”
I’ve written down my personal thoughts on Sōsuke and his mother, Lisa, in the following article.
Please give it a read.
Lisa | Voice Actor: Tina Fey
Lisa’s Basic Information
Sōsuke’s mother, 25 years old. She works at the “Himawari House” daycare center, which is adjacent to Sōsuke’s “Himawari Nursery School.”
Although she can seem a bit rough around the edges, and the fact that she has her son call her Lisa might momentarily make us “uneasy,” she is actually a very dependable person.
In the film, she performs “admirable adult actions” so naturally that we might overlook them.
Allowing her son to call her by her first name is just “one of many possible choices.”
Kōichi | Voice Actor: Matt Damon
Kōichi’s Basic Information
Sōsuke’s father, 30 years old. He is the captain of the cargo ship “Koganeimaru.”
Although he is a family man, his job as a sailor means he is rarely able to return home.
While he certainly exists in the film, he is completely uninvolved in the story. It’s quite a tale of an absent father.
Come to think of it, there were no old men at “Himawari House” either, and the only man who was properly involved in the story was Fujimoto. There are few stories with such a scarcity of male characters.
Fujimoto | Voice Actor: Liam Neeson
Fujimoto’s Basic Information
Ponyo’s father. He was once human but is now a sorcerer engaged in mysterious activities as a denizen of the sea.
In the film, he mentions “how much I struggled to get from being human to my current state,” but he possesses a mystique that seems impossible to obtain through mere hardship.
He resents humanity’s destructive activities, but he is extremely anxious about what Ponyo has done and rushes to resolve the situation.
A character like Fujimoto was envisioned from a very early stage (even before the image boards were created), and a gimmick where he would walk while sprinkling water at his feet was also considered (Source:”How Ponyo was born(ポニョはこうして生まれた, in Japanese)”).
Furthermore, there is a backstory that Fujimoto was once the only Asian crew member aboard Captain Nemo’s Nautilus from “Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Seas” (Source:”Ghibli Textbook 15: Ponyo(ジブリの教科書15:崖の上のポニョ, in Japanese)”).
Granmamare | Voice Actor: Cate Blanchett
Granmamare’s Basic Information
Ponyo’s mother and the goddess of the sea. She first appears in a gigantic form, but her size is flexible, and she can also become the same size as a normal human.
While Fujimoto desperately tries to retrieve Ponyo, who wants to become human, Granmamare makes the bold decision to “let her become human.”
From her depiction in the film, one gets the impression that Granmamare is the “Goddess of the Sea” or “the sea itself,” but the shocking truth, revealed by director Hayao Miyazaki himself, is that her true form is an anglerfish (Source: “The Place Where the Wind Returns, Continued(続・風の変える場所, in Japanese)”).
Anglerfish are generally polygynous, and it is believed that Granmamare also has many husbands besides Fujimoto. They are likely men who, just like Fujimoto, had their hearts completely stolen by Granmamare.
Toki | Voice Actor: Lily Tomlin
Toki’s Basic Information
A resident of the “Himawari House” daycare center where Lisa works. Like the other residents, she is on good terms with Sōsuke but always speaks to him with a sharp tongue.
In her first appearance, she is shown getting out of the daycare center’s van in a wheelchair, but near the end, she is depicted not only standing but also running.
The fact that she uses a wheelchair when she can actually stand might be Toki’s own form of “sarcasm.”
Other Characters
Yoshie, Kayo | Voice Actors: Betty White, Marsha Clark
Residents of the “Himawari House” daycare center where Lisa works. They are very close to Sōsuke and, in contrast to Toki, have a very calm demeanor.
Woman in the Boat | Voice Actor: Mona Marshall
A woman with a parasol whom Ponyo and Sōsuke meet while sailing on their pop-pop boat.
Although she seems to appear suddenly, director Hayao Miyazaki himself has stated that Ponyo’s series of actions concerning her baby were inserted to create the impression that “post-story Ponyo” will be able to get along well in the human world (“How Ponyo was born(ポニョはこうして生まれた, in Japanese)”).
The original Japanese voice actress, Rumi Hiiragi, is best known for her role as Chihiro in “Spirited Away” and also voiced Sachiko Hirokoji in “From Up on Poppy Hill.”
Kumiko, Karen | Voice Actors: Jenessa Rose, Colleen Villard
Sōsuke’s friends who attend “Himawari Nursery School.” Kumiko is a fashionable and lively girl. She seems quite concerned about Sōsuke, but perhaps annoyed by this, Ponyo squirts her with water.
The images used in this article are from the “Studio Ghibli Still Images” collection.
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Ponyo:Characters, Voice Actors & Analysis
