Ask John: What Anime Movies Have Been Released In US Theatres?

Question:
I just wanted to ask about anime movies released in U.S. theatres. I just want to be sure, were Akira, Ghost in the Shell, and Princess Mononoke the only anime movies to be released in U.S. theatres? And do you know what anime movies are going to be released in theatres here in the future?

Answer:
Setting aside the big titles- Akira, Ghost in the Shell, Pokemon, and Princess Mononoke – the Chinese Ghost Story animated film and a censored version of Perfect Blue recently had limited theatrical runs. Going back in time, quite a few anime titles have had limited, official, studio-sanctioned theatrical runs or premiers, including Macross II, Laputa, My Neighbor Totoro, the first Urotsukidoji “movie,” the infamous Warriors of the Wind (a heavily edited version of Nausicaa of the Valley of Wind), Star Quest (Carl Macek’s horribly corrupted dub of Royal Space Force), and the Robotech movie (a heavily edited version of Megazone 23 with spliced in footage from Southern Cross). Quite a few of the old Streamline dubs also had limited theatrical premiers. I may be mistaken on some of these, but I believe that all of these movies had a theatrical release in the early 1990s: Lensman, Vampire Hunter D, Robot Carnival, and Fist of the North Star. By all means, feel free to send me any additions or corrections to this answer.