Of all the animation studios in the world, Studio Ghibli has one of the most recognisable art styles out there. You can sit down with pretty much any Ghibli film and know that you're in for some good vibes, and beautiful landscapes that are oh-so-pleasing on the eyes.
With that in mind, it’s no wonder that over the years, fans of various video games, movies and TV series have loved imagining their favourite franchises reborn in Studio Ghibli's famous art style. Even Elden Ring, a game with a world I can’t imagine anyone would actually want to live in, looks way more pleasant when drawn in this way. Now though, one Reddit user has used the artificial intelligence programme Midjourney to create concept art for a Lord of the Rings and Studio Ghibli crossover, and it looks beautiful.
Before we get into it, take a look at this amazing LEGO build of Mordor below.
Shared on the r/midjourney subreddit, user grey_dragon14 shared nine images showing Gandalf, Frodo, Gollum, Samwise, Treebeard, Sauron and the giant spider Shelob reimagined in a Ghibli-inspired artstyle, as well as gorgeous new versions of Minas Tirith and Rivendell. Admittedly, if you look close enough at some of the images, there are some noticeable telltale signs that give away the fact that this is AI art (Gandalf has six fingers on his right hand, for example), but it still does a good job of getting the idea across. Fans are understandably in love with the concept.
“Omg I wish this was real!” commented Few_Explanation1170. “Amazing. I love Sam,” wrote esmeromantic. “This sub is great for making me wish to see movies that will never happen,” added BloodyReizen.
Recently, we’ve seen AI-generated concepts for Pixar-style Harry Potter and Lord of the Rings adaptations pop up online - while both were cute, it’s undeniable that the latter franchise works incredibly well with Studio Ghibli's art style. Although it seems very unlikely that an official crossover between the two will ever happen, we can dream.
Topics: The Lord Of The Rings, Anime, TV And Film