open/close all folders
Main Characters
Haru Yoshioka
Haru Yoshioka
Voiced by: Chizuru Ikewaki (Japanese), Anne Hathaway (English)
"A cat!?! I can't marry a cat!!"
Click here to see her as a cat.
An insecure high-school girl whose life takes a strange turn after she unwittingly saves the Crown Prince of Cats. The Prince's father, wanting to repay her for her deed, decides to marry Haru to his son and has her whisked away to a kingdom of bipedal talking cats.
- Accidental Marriage: When the Cat King sends his envoy Natoru to propose to Haru on Prince Lune's behalf, Haru is too flustered and confused to make any sort of response, which the envoy takes as a "Yes".
- Badass Adorable: It takes guts to run into traffic with a lacrosse stick to rescue a cat from becoming roadkill, and succeed. Later on, she stands up to the Cat King when he tries to propose to her, after nearly forcing her to marry his son.
- Butt-Monkey: The beginning shows Haru having all sorts of bad things happen to her, including getting to school late, being humiliated in front of her classmates, and generally being clumsy. And then she rescues a cat and everything goes to hell.
- Damsel in Distress: Unlike most of her fellow Ghibli heroines, Haru finds herself in a position where she needs to be rescued and never really makes any attempts to escape by herself. That said, she does grow a backbone in the end when she finally decides she's had enough of the Cat King's unreasonable demands.
- Disappeared Dad / Ambiguously Absent Parent: Her father isn't so much as mentioned.
- Distracted by the Luxury: In a way. Haru's excitement at getting to wear a beautiful gown is almost enough to make her forget about her unwilling engagement to the Prince. It certainly distracts her long enough to begin her transformation into a cat.
- Extreme Doormat: Haru's Fatal Flaw is her incapacity to be firm or confident enough to stand up for herself. A lot of her trouble with the cats comes from her inability to tell them firmly but politely "no". She grows out of it later.
- Important Haircut: By the end of the film, she's cut her hair short, which symbolizes her newfound confidence in herself.
- Kind Hearted Cat Lover: In the past, she's seen giving fish crackers to a stray cat (Yuki). At present, she succeeded running into traffic to rescue another stray cat (Lune) from becoming roadkill.
- The Klutz: Haru generally tends not to be fully aware of her surroundings, which causes her to frequently trip over things.
- Luminescent Blush: When the Baron scoops Haru up and effortlessly charges up the tower stairs while carrying her, she goes very pink in the face when he catches her staring. We can't blame her.
- Not a Morning Person: Haru has trouble getting up in the mornings, as shown in her Establishing Character Moment.
- Nice Girl: What she really needs validation for is her compassion, and getting this from Yuki is part of what turns her back into a human.
- Ordinary High-School Student
- Pimped-Out Dress: Haru wears a gorgeous, cream colored Elizabethan-style gown during the ball scene.
- Shrinking Violet: Started off as shy, quiet, and unassuming.
- Single Girl Seeks Most Popular Guy: If her crush on Machida is anything to go by. She's over him by the end.
Baron Humbert von Gikkingen aka The Baron
Baron Humbert von Gikkingen
Voiced by: Yoshihiko Hakamada (Japanese), Cary Elwes (English), Patrick Borg (European French)
"I am Baron Humbert von Gikkingen, and I have come for Haru."
Click here to see his appearence in Whisper of the Heart.
He is a (living) statue of an anthropomorphic cat who is fully dressed and owns the Cat Bureau. At night, he comes to life. He belongs to the owner of an antique shop named Shiro Nishi.
- Badass in a Nice Suit: Aside form when he's disguised in an 18th century-style getup, the Baron wears a nice combo of white suit, a burgundy waistcoat, white gloves and a top hat. About the badass part...
- Big Good: As the owner of the Cat Bureau, he is one of Haru's most valuable allies who will risk life and limb to get her back home.
- Classy Cane: To fit with his noble image. And he used it to perform Cane Fu.
- Coat, Hat, Mask: He looks like he's just stepped out from The Three Musketeers when in disguise to rescue Haru, sporting a green cape with a red interior, a black shirt and pants, fur-trimmed boots, a white domino mask, and a wide-brimmed hat with an ostrich feather. Once his cover's blown he ditches the disguise and changes back into his usual 19th century-style suit.
- Early Installment Character-Design Difference: The Baron has a slightly different design than he originally did in Whisper of the Heart, the most noticable differences being his eyes, that look distinctly more cat-like when compared to the more human looking eyes of his Whisper of The Heart counterpart; lighter fur around his face as opposed to it all being one color, not to mention the darker patch of fur on the top of his muzzle is also absent; and his suit is colored slightly differently as well. This can be justified in universe as being that the author altered and refined his design over time, making it more distinct from the figurine that inspired The Baron.
- Everyone Calls Him "Barkeep": Nobody addresses the Baron as Humbert.
- Glowing Eyes of Doom: In the manga. If you value your kingdom or your hide, don't piss him off!
- Humanlike Hand Anatomy: Unlike all the other cats, the Baron has hands instead of paws—justified due to being a statue of a cat brought to life rather than a flesh-and-blood feline himself.
- Living Toys: The Baron is a living doll, a state owed to him being a special project by his creator.
- Master Swordsman: Not only does he take out about five guards with just his cane, but later breaks the Cat King's jewel crown and shaves the lower half of his body in one move.
- Nice Guy: Arguably one of the most polite, helpful, heroic people/cats in this movie.
- Red Eyes, Take Warning: In the original manga.
- Spell My Name with a "The": Fans of this movie (or if his name is going to be used in a sentence) would often times call Baron, "The Baron". Nobody really called him by his first name, "Humbert". In-Universe, he's not mentioned by first name explicitly except when he introduces himself. However, Baron himself doesn't insist on the "the" and seems fine with simply being called "Baron".
Toto
Toto
Voiced by: Yousuke Saitou (Japanese), Elliott Gould (English)
"I like this girl more every minute."
A friend of the Baron, he is a stone statue of a crow which comes to life when the sun sets. While at the Cat Bureau, he has a soul.
- Clever Crows: Portrayed positively, for a change. In the manga Toto is specifically stated to be a magpie, but he loses his white markings for the film.
- Toto summons a gigantic flock of crows for Haru to walk down after she returns back to her world.
- Dark Is Not Evil: Contrary to your usual depiction of crows, Toto is one of the good guys.
- Deadpan Snarker: Especially towards Muta.
- Our Gargoyles Rock: Despite not looking particularly like one, Toto is a gargoyle. Like the living toy Baron, its state of life comes from being a work of love. He is a member of the Baron's Cat Office along with Muta, who likes to antagonize.
- The Rival: He often fights with Muta.
- Living Toys: Similar to the Baron, Toto is a living stone statue, a state owed to him being a special project by his creator.
- Nice Guy: He is very friendly and nice to Haru. Muta, on the other hand...
Muta
Muta/Renaldo Moon
Voiced by: Tetsu Watanabe (Japanese), Peter Boyle (English), Gudo Hoegel (German), Alberto Mieza (European Spanish)
"I respect a woman who stands up for herself. Even if she does like sticking her nose in other people's business!"
The Baron's portly companion at the Cat Bureau. After being impressed by Haru's gut, he helps the Baron and Haru escape from the cat realm.
- Accidental Pervert: After their arrival in the Cat Kingdom, Muta attempts to enter the changing room with Haru, who in the Japanese version teasingly calls him "Ecchi~!" — localized in the English dub as "Beat it." — while he's indignantly shooed away by the attendants.
- Adaptational Dye-Job: His counterpart in Whisper of the Heart had tan fur while here he’s white.
- Ascended Extra: He originally appeared in Whisper of the Heart, however, his role in the film was minor and didn't speak at all (being that he was a real cat), in The Cat Returns however, his role has grown significantly and is the Baron's companion in this film.
- Big Eater: Clears a whole plate of cakes in seconds. It's revealed that under the name "Renaldo Moon", he devoured all the fish in a lake in the Cat Kingdom, which made him so infamous that he is mentioned in their historical frescos.
- The Big Guy: He takes out multiple guards easily, and throws Haru up several floors of the castle's tower.
- Bruiser with a Soft Center: Muta is large and a bit unpleasant, but at heart he's just a big softie.
- Deadpan Snarker: Muta is known for his unchecked sense of sarcasm towards people.
- Jerk with a Heart of Gold: He may be rude, grumpy and care a bit too much about food, but at the end of the day, Muta is fiercely loyal to his friends and will stick by them through thick and thin.
- The Rival: He often fights with Toto.
- Suddenly Speaking: Muta talks in this film as opposed to Whisper of the Heart, where he was basically slient. Justifed in that he's a real cat in universe in Whisper of the Heart as opposed to The Cat Returns, where's he's an in universe fictional character.
Cat King
Cat King
Voiced by: Tetsurō Tanba (Japanese), Tim Curry (English)
The King of the Cat Kingdom, also the main antagonist of the movie. He forced Haru to marry his son and then, after Lune revealed he already had a fiancée, marry him
- Adipose Rex: While not exactly fat, there certainly is a lot of him.
- Big Bad: Of the movie.
- The Caligula: To be honest, this cat is quite insane. He throws people out of windows for liking acts that he doesn't like, among various other despotic acts (it turns out, that the cat chucked out of the window survived the fall and ends up sulking at the wall).
- Cheshire Cat Grin/Slasher Smile: The Cat King sports one or the other very often, most notable being when he goes to see Haru after she first arrives (A) and when he blew up the tower (B).
- Cool Old Guy: Well, at least he tried to be one..."babe."
- Determinator: Whether its kidnapping Haru and taking her to his kingdom, to chasing her across various puzzles and perils, he will have her marry his son.
- Even Evil Has Loved Ones: For as much of a jerk the Cat King is to everyone else, he loves his son and respects his wishes to marry Yuki rather than Haru.
- Fish Eyes: One of his eyes sometimes fall under this.
- Large Ham: Being voiced by TIM CURRY in the dub doesn’t help at all.
- Love Father, Love Son: When it transpires that Lune is in fact set on marrying Yuki, the Cat King tries to invoke an inverted version of this trope by telling Haru that as a "consolation prize" she can just marry him instead. She declines.
- Sanity Slippage: Introduced as laid back, taciturn, and almost lazy, the King becomes more and more unhinged, loud, and obsessed with fulfilling his goals.
Supporting Characters
Prince Lune
Prince Lune
Voiced by: Takayuki Yamada (Japanese), Andrew Bevis (English), Um Sang-hyun (Korean)
The stray cat Haru rescued who turned out to be the Crown Prince of the Cat Kingdom.
- Hero of Another Story: He and Yuki are the protagonists of their own romance story, the climax of which happens to intersect with Haru's Lilliputian adventures.
- Inter-Class Romance: The prince of the Cat Kingdom is in love with a lowly royal maid. Thank goodness, the King actually supports his son.
- Like Father, Unlike Son: Compared to his eccentric (read: somewhat insane) father, Prince Lune is dashing, competent and kind-hearted.
- Missing Mom: No mention is made of his mother.
- Reasonable Authority Figure: He is clearly of a sounder mind than his father is, and steps in to take action when his father takes things just a tad too far.
- Royals Who Actually Do Something: Though absent for a majority of the film after his initial introduction, his return has him immediately taking action to put an end to his father's shenanigans.
- Secret Relationship: The kingdom is very surprised when Lune reveals that he's been courting Yuki.
- Screw the Rules, I'm Doing What's Right!: He rebels against his father's orders to get the girl he's kidnapped back home. (Luckily, his father forgives him after having a change of heart.)
- Shared Unusual Trait: Easily the only thing Lune has in common with his father are his mismatched eyes.
- State Sec: Has his own personal guard, loyal only to him.
- The Wise Prince: It sure as hell doesn't run in the family.
- Your Favorite: He travels specially to the human world so he can propose to Yuki with the fish biscuits she likes, and accidentally initiated the whole plot in the process.
Yuki
Yuki
Voiced by: Aki Maeda (Japanese), Judy Greer (English)
A lowly servant in the palace, she’s among the very few cats who genuinely want Haru to escape.
- Because You Were Nice to Me: Yuki was saved from starvation as an orphaned kitten by a young Haru, and it's implied she's been watching over Haru ever since.
- Cat Stereotype: As shy and delicate as her white fur.
- Connected All Along: She and Haru serendipitously appear in the most important moments of each other's lives, not that Haru realizes this until years after their first meeting.
- Cute Kitten: When she and Haru first met.
- Guardian Angel: Acts as this towards Haru. Moreso in the manga, when it turns out that Yuki was Dead All Along.
- Interclass Romance: With Lune, the prince and heir to the cat throne.
- Meaningful Name: A beautiful white cat named "Yuki" whose name can be Japanese for "snow".
- Nice Girl: Yuki is kind and gentle, and the only citizen of the cat kingdom to try and warn Haru of the danger she is in.
- Only Sane Man: There is not a scene she's in where she isn't doing the best she can for everyone, in defiance of their own foolishness, the king's oppression, and the increasingly crazy plot.
- Spared by the Adaptation: She and all of the other citizens of the cat kingdom were long-dead in the manga. If this is also the case in the movie, it isn't ever brought up.
Natoru
Natoru
Voiced by: Mari Hamada (Japanese), Andy Richter (English)
The Cat King's attendant.
- Affably Evil: Downplayed. Natoru isn't evil per se, he's just trying to do his job.
- Blush Sticker: An odd feature for a cat to have.
- Comedic Sociopathy: Natoru is friendly enough, but still kidnaps Haru and completely ignores her pleas to let her go home, casually telling her she'll get over the wedding jitters in no time!
- Eyes Always Shut: Except when shocked or startled.
- Literal-Minded: He takes Haru's musings about how relaxing a cat's life could be as confirmation that she does in fact want to marry the Prince. Needless to say, this isn't the case.
- Professional Butt-Kisser: To the Cat King. Andy Richter's dubbing of Natoru hilariously showcases this, as lampshaded by the actor himself in behind the scenes footage:Andy Richter: I guess I have a toadying kind of voice [...] You hear my voice and you think "suck up", I guess.
- She's a Man in Japan: More like She's a Man in the US. Natoru is female in the Japanese dub but male in the English dub.
- Shipper on Deck: Natoru looks on dreamily during Haru and the Baron's Dance of Romance, and is delighted when the Baron reveals his true identity.
- Shoot the Messenger: Natoru goes to meet Haru to make sure that all of the gifts are to her liking, only to be met with an uderstandably irate Haru reeling from what has probably been the worst morning of her life.
Natori
Natori
Voiced by: Kenta Satori (Japanese), René Auberjonois (English)
The King's loyal advisor.
- Beleaguered Assistant: Very much so.
- Everyone Has Standards: When the cat king asks the much younger, human Haru to marry him, Natori looks appalled on her behalf at the very suggestion.
- Evil Chancellor: Subverted. It's more than evident that Natori is the real power behind the Cat Kingdom's throne. He may look a bit shady and untrusty at a first glance, but actually he is...
- The Good Chancellor: Natori is a great person entirely devoted to the Cat Kingdom's well being and is extremely loyal to the Cat King, despite his Lord's wacky hijinks and temper tantrums. When the defeated Cat King gives up his throne on favor of his son, Natori shows his loyalty by immediately giving up his own seat of power as well.
- Pragmatic Villainy: Natori tries to convince the King not to blow up the tower because it will ruin his approval rating.
- Undying Loyalty: To the Cat King.
Hiromi
Hiromi
Voiced by: Hitomi Sato (Japanese), Kristen Bell (English)
Haru's best friend from school.
- Blush Sticker: Hiromi is the only character besides Natoru to have these on at all times.
- The Gadfly: Good-naturedly teases Haru about her chronic misfortune.
- Locked Out of the Loop: Hiromi is completely unaware of what Haru goes through over the course of the story, her only inkling to it being the mountain of lacrosse sticks delivered to her front door with no explanation.
- Passionate Sports Girl: Is on the school lacrosse team.
- Unwitting Instigator of Doom: Her asking Haru to take over her cleanup duty is what indirectly causes Haru to actually consider escaping to the Cat Kingdom, which is unfortunately just enough incentive for Natoru to take her there against her will.
Naoko Yoshioka
Naoko Yoshioka
Voiced by: Kumiko Okae (Japanese), Kristine Sutherland (English)
Haru's mother.
- Delayed Reaction: Haru comes home from school to find her mother hard at work, and asks her if cats can talk. Her mother absentmindedly says she doesn't know, before she realizes what Haru actually said and lets out a "What?".
- Glamorous Single Mother: Appears to have raised Haru on her own since no mention is made of a husband or partner.
- Parental Obliviousness: Naoko doesn't seem to have noticed that her daughter never got home from school that evening; whether this is a case of her simply being distracted or something else has yet to be shown.
- Textile Work Is Feminine: Her job seems to involve textiles, since she is seen working on a patchwork design, and several bolts of fabric can be seen in her bedroom.
- Unnamed Parent: No one calls her by her name in the film, but the credits call her Naoko.
