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Toho#Toho Animation

{{short description|Japanese entertainment corporation}}

{{about|the Japanese film, theatre production, and distribution company}}

{{Multiple issues|{{Expand Japanese|東宝|date=July 2022}}

{{More citations needed|date=December 2021}}}}

{{Use mdy dates|date=November 2022}}

{{Use American English|date=November 2022}}

{{Infobox company

| name = Toho Co., Ltd.

| native_name = 東宝株式会社

| romanized_name = Tōhō Kabushiki-gaisha

| trading_name =

| logo = Toho Logo.svg

| logo_caption =

| image = 東宝日比谷ビル（2018年4月30日撮影）.jpg

| image_caption = Toho's headquarters in Hibiya Chanter and Toho Hibiya Building, Chiyoda, Tokyo

| type = Public

| traded_as = {{tyo|9602}}
{{Fukuoka Stock Exchange|9602}}
Nikkei 225 component (TYO)

| predecessors = {{plainlist|

  • Tokyo-Takarazuka Theatre Company{{cite book|last=Tanaka|first=Tomoyuki|author-link=Tomoyuki Tanaka|title=The Complete History of Toho Special Effects Movies|chapter=Toho Special Effects Prehistory Films|publisher=Toho Publishing|pages=82–83|year=1983|isbn=4-924609-00-5|language=Japanese}}
  • Photo Chemical Laboratory Co., Ltd.
  • J.O. Studio
  • Toho Film Distribution Co., Ltd.

}}

| successor =

| founder = Ichizō Kobayashi

| defunct =

| fate =

| area_served = Worldwide, mainly Japan

| key_people = {{Ill|Yoshishige Shimatani|ja|島谷能成}}
{{small|(chairman)}}
{{Ill|Hiroyasu Matsuoka|ja|松岡宏泰}}
{{small|(president and CEO)}}

| industry = {{Unbulleted list

| Media

| Entertainment

}}

| products = Motion pictures
Television programs
Video games

| production =

| services = Film production{{cite web|url=https://www.toho.co.jp/company/info/profile|title=企業概要|publisher=Toho|access-date=February 16, 2025}}
Film distribution
Movie theatres

| revenue =

| operating_income =

| net_income =

| aum =

| assets =

| num_employees = 3,617

| divisions = {{Plainlist|

  • Motion Picture Department
  • Theatrical Department
  • Corporate Real Estate Department

}}

| subsid = {{Plainlist|

}}

| parent = Hankyu Hanshin Toho Group{{efn|The controlling shareholders of Toho are affiliated with the Hankyu Hanshin Toho Group. They are: Hankyu Hanshin Holdings (12.81%), Hankyu Hanshin Properties (8.51%), and H2O Retailing (7.67%).}}

| foundation = {{Start date and age|1932|8|12}} (as Tokyo-Takarazuka Theatre Company)
Tokyo, Japan

| hq_location = Yūrakuchō

| location_city = Chiyoda, Tokyo

| location_country = Japan

| locations =

| website = {{url|https://www.toho.co.jp/}}

}}

{{Nihongo|Toho Co., Ltd.{{efn|Sometimes stylized as Toho Company, Ltd., especially in older English-language production logos.}}|東宝株式会社|Tōhō Kabushiki-gaisha}} is a Japanese entertainment company that primarily engages in producing and distributing films and exhibiting stage plays. It is headquartered in Chiyoda, Tokyo, and is one of the core companies of the Osaka-based Hankyu Hanshin Toho Group. Toho is best known for producing and distributing many of Ishirō Honda and Eiji Tsuburaya's kaiju and tokusatsu films as well as the films of Akira Kurosawa and the anime of Studio Ghibli, Shin-Ei Animation, TMS Entertainment, CoMix Wave Films, and OLM, Inc. The company has released the majority of the highest-grossing Japanese films, and through its subsidiaries, is the largest film importer in Japan. The Doraemon film series, distributed by Toho since 1980, is the highest-grossing film series and anime film series in Japan. It is also one of the highest-grossing non-English language film series.

file:toho logo (text).svg

Toho's most famous creation is Godzilla, featured in 33 of the company's films. Godzilla, Rodan, Mothra, King Ghidorah, and Mechagodzilla are described as Toho's Big Five due to their numerous appearances throughout the Godzilla franchise, as well as spin-offs. Toho has also been involved in the production of numerous anime titles. Its subdivisions are Toho-Towa Company, Limited (Japanese exclusive theatrical distributor of Universal Pictures via NBCUniversal Entertainment Japan), Towa Pictures Company Limited (Japanese exclusive theatrical distributor of Paramount Pictures), Toho Pictures Incorporated, Toho International Inc., Toho E. B. Company Limited, and Toho Music Corporation & Toho Costume Company Limited. The company is the largest shareholder (7.96%) of Fuji Media Holdings Inc.

Toho is one of the four members of the Motion Picture Producers Association of Japan (MPPAJ), is the largest of Japan's Big Four film studios, and is the only film studio that is a component of the Nikkei 225 index.

History

{{Expand section|date=July 2022}}

Toho was created by the founder of the Hankyu Railway, Ichizō Kobayashi, in 1932 as the {{nihongo|Tokyo-Takarazuka Theatre Company|株式会社東京宝塚劇場|Kabushiki gaisha Tōkyō Takarazuka Gekijō}}. It managed much of the kabuki in Tokyo and, among other properties, the eponymous Tokyo Takarazuka Theatre and the Imperial Garden Theater in Tokyo; Toho and Shochiku enjoyed a duopoly over theaters in Tokyo for many years.{{Cite web |title=Toho Co., Ltd. Business Information, Profile, and History |url=https://companies.jrank.org/pages/4475/Toho-Co-Ltd.html |access-date=2024-11-28 |website=companies.jrank.org |language=en}}

= Labor disputes (1946–1948) =

{{main|Toho strikes}}

File:Toho Labor disputes.JPG

After the end of World War II, the new Occupation government allowed and encouraged the formation of labor unions, which had been banned under the Imperial government.{{cite book |last1=Hirano |first1=Kyōko |title=Mr. Smith Goes to Tokyo: The Japanese Cinema Under the American Occupation |date=1992 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=6OsKAQAAMAAJ |publisher=Smithsonian Institution Press |isbn=9781560981572 |pages=205 |access-date=4 November 2023}} During a general strike of film studio employees beginning in October 1946, a group of Toho's ten top stars led by Denjiro Okochi split from the main Toho union along with 445 employees. During the resolution of the strike, a closed-shop provision with the main union led to the establishment of the Shintoho Company, which comprised the members of the dissenting union and former Toho facilities.Hirano (1992), pp. 218–223

The loss of major stars led to the hiring and training of new stars, including Toshiro Mifune. The contract made after the strike stipulated that Toho would only produce films approved by a committee that included union members, which led to filmmakers gaining unprecedented creative and productive control over their films. While Toho produced only thirteen films in 1947, six Toho films, including One Wonderful Sunday, directed by Akira Kurosawa, were ranked among the best ten films of the year in Kinema Junpo. However, each film had double or triple the budget of films produced by other studios, and the company suffered severe losses.{{cite book |last1=Richie |first1=Donald |last2=Anderson |first2=Joseph L. |title=The Japanese Film: Art and Industry |date=1982 |isbn=9780691053516 |page=166 |publisher=Princeton University Press |edition=Expanded |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=uSSUswEACAAJ |access-date=4 November 2023}}

In 1948, the new Toho president Tetsuzo Watanabe ordered a return of the wartime quota of 24 films per year and the end of control over production by the union. In April, Toho management announced the dismissal of 1200 employees,Hirano (1992), pp. 223-229 with the aim of both cutting expenses and eliminating Communist leaders from the union.{{cite news |title=Japan's movie-makers move to oust communist elements |work=Nippon Times |date=9 April 1948}} Negotiations failed and the union occupied the studio on April 15, joined by activists from the Japan Communist Party and other organizations, erecting barricades and closing the main gates.

On August 13, the Tokyo District Court decided in Toho's favor, and on the morning of August 19, a district police chief arrived at the front gate to read out the court decision. Two thousand policemen surrounded the studio, reinforced by soldiers, three airplanes, and several armored cars and tanks sent by the U.S. Eighth Army.Richie & Anderson (1982), p. 170 The union leaders agreed to end their occupation on the condition the union was not disbanded.

Toho was severely weakened after the strikes and produced only four films in 1948 and five films in 1949, and continued to distribute Shintoho films until the end of 1949.Hirano (1992), pp. 230-236

= International expansion (1953–present) =

{{See also|Toho International}}

In May 1953, Toho established Toho International, a Los Angeles-based subsidiary intended to target North American and Latin American markets. Seven Samurai was among the first films offered for foreign sales.{{sfn|Ryfle|Godziszewski|2017|p=148}}{{multiple image

| align = right

| image1 = Toho Studios.jpg

| width1 = 180

| caption1 = Toho Studios in Setagaya, Tokyo

| image2 = Godzilla Square 2018.jpg

| width2 = 180

| caption2 = The Hibiya Godzilla Square located nearby the headquarters in Chiyoda, Tokyo

| footer_align =

| footer =

}}

Toho and Shochiku competed with the influx of Hollywood films and boosted the film industry by focusing on new directors of the likes of Akira Kurosawa, Kon Ichikawa, Keisuke Kinoshita, Ishirō Honda, and Kaneto Shindo.{{Cite book|url=https://archive.org/details/The_International_Movie_Industry|title=The international movie industry|last=Kindem|first=Gorham Anders|date=2000|page=17|publisher=Carbondale : Southern Illinois University Press}}

After several successful film exports to the United States during the 1950s through Henry G. Saperstein, Toho took over the La Brea Theatre in Los Angeles to show its films without the need to sell them to a distributor. It was known as the Toho Theatre from the late 1960s until the 1970s.[http://cinematreasures.org/theater/2293/ Fox La Brea Theatre in Los Angeles, CA]. Cinema Treasures. Retrieved on 2014-05-12. Toho also had a theater in San Francisco and opened a theater in New York City in 1963."Toho" Far East Film News December 25, 1963. The Shintoho Company, which existed until 1961, was named New Toho because it broke off from the original company.{{Cite web |title=Nudes! Guns! Ghosts! The Sensational Cinema of Shintoho |url=http://thecinematheque.ca/nudes-guns-ghosts-the-sensational-cinema-of-shintoho |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190806234425/http://thecinematheque.ca/nudes-guns-ghosts-the-sensational-cinema-of-shintoho |archive-date=August 6, 2019 |access-date=May 10, 2022 |work=The Cinematheque}} Toho has contributed to the production of some American films, including Sam Raimi's 1998 film, A Simple Plan{{cite web |last1=Cox |first1=Dan |title=Fonda has 'A Simple Plan' |url=https://variety.com/1997/film/news/fonda-has-a-simple-plan-111797668/ |website=Variety |access-date=15 July 2018|date=1997-12-21 }} and Paul W. S. Anderson's 2020 military science fiction/kaiju film, Monster Hunter.{{cite web |title=映画 モンスターハンター |url=https://www.toho.co.jp/movie/lineup/monsterhunter-movie.html |access-date=May 10, 2022 |work=Toho |language=Japanese |archive-date=February 14, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200214124353/https://www.toho.co.jp/movie/lineup/monsterhunter-movie.html |url-status=dead }}

In 2019, Toho invested ¥15.4 billion ($14 million) into their Los Angeles-based subsidiary Toho International Inc. as part of their "Toho Vision 2021 Medium-term Management Strategy", a strategy to increase content, platform, real-estate, beat JPY50 billion profits, and increase character businesses on Toho intellectual properties such as Godzilla. Hiroyasu Matsuoka was named the representative director of the US subsidiary.{{cite web|url=https://variety.com/2019/film/asia/japan-godzilla-toho-expansion-in-hollywood-1203192294/|title='Godzilla' Owner Toho Poised for Expansion in Hollywood|first=Patrick|last=Frater|work=Variety|date=April 18, 2019|access-date=April 18, 2019|url-status=live|archive-date=April 18, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190418100048/https://variety.com/2019/film/asia/japan-godzilla-toho-expansion-in-hollywood-1203192294/}}

In 2020, Toho acquired a 34.8% stake in the animation studio TIA, with ILCA and Anima each retaining a 32.6% stake. In 2022, Toho acquired Anima's 32.6% stake to take a controlling 67.4% stake in TIA, making the studio a subsidiary, and ultimately renaming the studio into Toho Animation Studios.{{cite web|last1=Pineda|first1=Rafael Antonio |title=TOHO Acquires Controlling Stake in TIA, Renames it to Toho Animation Studio|url=https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2022-09-20/toho-acquires-controlling-stake-in-tia-renames-it-to-toho-animation-studio/.189873|website=Anime News Network|access-date=December 18, 2022|date=September 20, 2022}}

In December 2023, Toho announced their intent to acquire a 25% stake in Fifth Season for $225 million via Toho International. Following the completion of the deal, Fifth Season will be valued at $900 million; CJ ENM will remain the majority shareholder in the company, with former owner Endeavor also continuing to serve as a strategic shareholder. CEOs Graham Taylor and Chris Rice stated that this investment would empower the company to continue the expansion of its premium slate and create opportunities for collaboration between Fifth Season, Toho and CJ ENM to produce global content as well as content produced in Japan.{{cite web|title=Japan's Toho Acquires 25% Stake In Fifth Season; Korea's CJ ENM Remains Majority Shareholder|website=Deadline Hollywood|first=Liz|last=Shackleton|date=10 December 2023|access-date=11 December 2023|url=https://deadline.com/2023/12/fifth-season-toho-japan-cj-enm-korea-1235661178/}}

Following the success of Godzilla Minus One (2023) as their first self-distributed film in the U.S., Toho declared in March 2024 that Godzilla is their "Intellectual property (IP) treasure" and they had regained retailing rights overseas (which were once abandoned), and now are able to sell, advertise, and distribute their own products to consumers outside Japan directly.{{Cite web |date=March 11, 2024 |title=東宝「ゴジラ-1.0」アカデミー賞受賞が開く海外市場 |url=https://www.nikkei.com/article/DGXZQOUC047V10U4A300C2000000/ |access-date=March 13, 2024 |website=The Nikkei |language=ja}} The company also said that the film winning Best Visual Effects at the 96th Academy Awards is helping them gain more recognition and advancing more business extension overseas.{{Cite web |date=March 12, 2024 |title=「ゴジラビジネス」完全覚醒 東宝、商品化権買い戻し - 日本経済新聞 |url=https://www.nikkei.com/nkd/industry/article/?n_m_code=151&ng=DGKKZO79160790R10C24A3TB0000 |access-date=March 13, 2024 |website=The Nikkei |language=ja}}In April 2025, Toho announced plans to invest ¥15 billion ($105 million) into Godzilla, including a Godzilla Minus One sequel, video games, merchandise, and amusement park attractions, as part of a larger ¥120 billion ($830 million) investment into expanding its film and anime projects.{{Cite web |last=Kim |first=Sohee |date=2025-04-14 |title='Godzilla' Studio Toho to Invest $830 million in global push |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-04-14/-godzilla-studio-toho-to-invest-830-million-in-global-push |access-date=2025-04-17 |website=Bloomberg}}

{{-}}

Productions and distributions

=Films=

{{Main|List of Toho films}}

=Television=

==Tokusatsu==

==Anime==

==Toho Animation==

File:Toho Animation Logo.svg

Toho Animation (stylized as TOHO animation) is a Japanese anime production label founded in 2012, and owned by Toho Co., Ltd., which is one of the top three film distributors in Japan. The process of the label is done in a similar fashion to Sony Pictures Animation.

{{div col}}

{{div col end}}

= Theater =

Toho has produced revivals and original works. Years shown refer to when they staged each piece.

  • Les Miserables{{when?|date=July 2024}}
  • Elisabeth
  • Rent
  • Mozart! {{when?|date=July 2024}}
  • Newsies
  • Spirited Away
  • Moulin Rouge! (2023)
  • JoJo's Bizarre Adventure (2024){{Cite web |last=中川 |first=實穗 |date=2024-03-19 |title=ミュージカル『ジョジョの奇妙な冒険 ファントムブラッド』観劇レポート {{!}} ローチケ演劇宣言！ |url=https://engekisengen.com/genre/musical/77646/ |access-date=2024-07-09 |website=engekisengen.com |language=ja}}
  • In This Corner of the World (2024){{Cite web |title=ミュージカル「この世界の片隅に」を見たワハハ（小原篤のアニマゲ丼）：朝日新聞デジタル |url=https://www.asahi.com/articles/ASS5K0PNFS5KUCVL028M.html |access-date=2024-07-09 |website=www.asahi.com|date=May 17, 2024 }}

=Video games=

In more recent years and for a period, they have produced video games. One of their first video games was the 1990 NES game titled Circus Caper. Later, they followed with a series of games based on Godzilla and a 1992 game called Serizawa Nobuo no Birdy Try. It also published games such as Super Aleste (Space Megaforce in North America). They even worked with Bandai on Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, released in Japan in 1988 and in the United States in 1989.

Significant employees

dates as company employee

{{Expand section|date=May 2023}}

  • Akira Kurosawa (1937–1966){{cite book|last=Galbraith|first=Stuart IV|title=The Emperor and the Wolf: The Lives and Films of Akira Kurosawa and Toshiro Mifune|year=2002|publisher=Faber and Faber, Inc.|isbn=978-0-571-19982-2|pages=25, 440|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/emperorwolf00galb}}
  • Isao Matsuoka (1957-2009) - Longtime president and chairman of Toho.
  • {{Ill|Iwao Mori|ja|森岩雄}} (1937-1976)
  • Eiji Tsuburaya (1937-1969)
  • Tomoyuki Tanaka (1941-1947;1952-1997) - Creator of Godzilla; President, CEO, and Chairman of Toho Studios
  • Ishirō Honda (1942-1975)

Toho Cinderella Audition

The Toho Cinderella Audition is an audition to discover new young actresses, first held in 1984 and irregularly held since then. It is considered one of Japan's "Big Three Actress Auditions", along with Oscar Promotion's National Bishōjo Contest and Horipro's Talent Scout Caravan.{{Cite web |last=日本経済新聞社・日経BP社 |title=長澤まさみらを輩出 「東宝シンデレラ」が新時代へ｜エンタメ！｜NIKKEI STYLE |url=https://style.nikkei.com/article/DGXMZO04515470W6A700C1000000?channel=ASH04002 |access-date=2022-07-01 |website=NIKKEI STYLE |date=August 11, 2016 |language=ja}}

class="wikitable"
No.

!Year

!The Grand Prix

!Special Jury Prize

!Others

1

|1984

|Yasuko Sawaguchi

|Minako Fujishiro

|

2

|1987

|Megumi Odaka

|Maki Mizuno

|

3

|1991

|Keiko Imamura

|Sayaka Ōsawa

|

4

|1996

|Maho Nonami

|Misato Tanaka
Asami Yamamoto

|

5

|2000

|Masami Nagasawa

|Chihiro Otsuka

|

6

|2006

|Manami Kurose

|Yūko Masumoto
Ayaka Ikezawa

|

7

|2011

|Moka Kamishiraishi

|Mone Kamishiraishi
Narumi Akizuki
Junna Matsushima
Hirona Yamazaki

|Ryō Ogawa (New Generation Award)
Minami Hamabe (New Generation Award)

8

|2016

|Riko Fukumoto

|Yuria Kakizawa
Hina Suzuki
Amane Kamiya
Neo Inoue

|

9

|2022

|Noa Shiroyama

|Airi Nishikawa

|Kōe Odani (Men's category "Toho New Face")
Honoha Yamato (Musical Award)

Headquarters

Toho's headquarters, the {{nihongo|Toho Hibiya Building|東宝日比谷ビル|Tōhō Hibiya Biru}}, are in Yūrakuchō, Chiyoda, Tokyo. The company moved into its current headquarters in April 2005."[http://www.toho.co.jp/toho_ir/company/history.html 会社の沿革] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140220070049/http://www.toho.co.jp/toho_ir/company/history.html |date=February 20, 2014 }}". Toho. Retrieved on February 26, 2010. "2005年4月 東宝本社を東宝日比谷ビル（東京都千代田区有楽町一丁目2－2）に移転。"

See also

{{Portal|Tokyo|Companies}}

References

{{reflist}}

=Sources=

  • {{cite book |last1=Ryfle|first1=Steve|last2=Godziszewski|first2=Ed|title=Ishiro Honda: A Life in Film, from Godzilla to Kurosawa|publisher=Wesleyan University Press|year=2017|isbn=978-0-8195-7087-1}}

=Notes=

{{Notelist}}

External links

{{commons category}}

  • {{Official website|http://www.toho.co.jp/en}}
  • [https://www.youtube.com/user/TohoChannel Official Toho YouTube channel.]
  • [http://www.tohoeiga.jp/eng/index.html Toho Pictures official website]
  • [http://tohotowa.co.jp/ TOHO-TOWA Company, Limited official website]
  • [http://towapictures.co.jp/ TOWA PICTURES Company, Ltd. official website]
  • [https://www.imdb.com/company/co0002219 Toho Company on IMDb]
  • {{anime News Network|company|39}}

{{Nikkei 225}}

{{Authority control}}

Category:1932 establishments in Japan

Category:Anime companies

Category:International sales agents

Category:Companies listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange

Category:Companies in the Nikkei 225

Category:Conglomerate companies based in Tokyo

Category:Conglomerate companies established in 1932

Category:Conglomerate companies of Japan

Category:Distribution companies based in Tokyo

Category:Entertainment companies established in 1975

Category:Film distributors of Japan

Category:Holding companies based in Tokyo

Category:Holding companies established in 1932

Category:Hankyu Hanshin Holdings

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Category:Japanese film studios

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Category:Mass media companies established in 1932

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