Kubo and the Two Strings: Age Rating, Culture & Stop-Motion

Laika’s 2016 fantasy “Kubo and the Two Strings” combines breathtaking stop-motion animation with Japanese folklore, but parents should know it earned a PG rating for intense scenes that go beyond mild cartoon antics. This guide cuts through the hype to give you the facts you actually need before pressing play.

Release Year: 2016 · Director: Travis Knight · Studio: Laika · Runtime: 101 minutes · Rating: PG

The key facts table below summarizes production details and character attributes for quick reference.

Is Kubo and the Two Strings appropriate for children?

The MPAA rating is PG, but that single letter doesn’t tell the whole story. According to Kids-In-Mind, which breaks content into specific categories, the violence score sits at 4 out of 10 — featuring ghostly chases, transformations, and battles that go beyond mild cartoon antics. Language is rated just 1 out of 10 with only mild obscenities, and sex/nudity scores a flat 0.

Age rating details

The Australian parenting guide Raising Children Network takes a more granular view: they recommend the film not for children under 9, suggest parental guidance for those under 11, and mark it suitable for viewers over 11. This aligns with what parent reviewers consistently report — the film’s emotional and visual intensity exceeds what most kids under 9 can process comfortably.

Parent reviews

Parent perspectives echo this pattern. One mother reviewing for Mom’s Movie Minute noted that she “may want to consider leaving kids 9 and under at home,” citing the creepy antagonists and scary grandfather figure as primary concerns. The Screenwise guide similarly recommends ages 9 and up due to “creepy villains.”

Content warnings

The specific disturbing elements worth noting include the evil twin sisters who pursue Kubo relentlessly to claim his remaining eye, and the antagonist Moon King — Kubo’s own grandfather — who ranks among animation’s more intimidating figures. According to Plugged In, spiritual themes include ancestor prayer and spirit realm battles that may unsettle sensitive viewers. The film does explore grief, family bonds, and storytelling as a coping mechanism, as documented by Wildezine.

What culture is Kubo and the Two Strings based on?

Kubo draws heavily from Japanese folklore, set in early feudal Japan with a story that weaves together multiple mythological traditions. According to All the Anime, the film incorporates influences from samurai fiction, Journey to the West, and broader Japanese mythology.

Japanese folklore influences

The film features authentic Japanese yokai — supernatural creatures from folklore. The All the Anime blog documents creatures like the Gashadokuro, a gargantuan skeleton that roams seeking living flesh, as well as references to the Basan fire-breathing chicken, as noted by Wallflyer. These aren’t random inventions — Laika’s own behind-the-scenes materials confirm the studio conducted historical research for mythical Japan, lending credibility to the cultural representation.

Setting in feudal Japan

The Bon Festival plays a central role — this is the real Japanese Buddhist ceremony where families honor deceased ancestors. In the film, Kubo accidentally stays out past dark during Bon, triggering the pursuit by his aunties that drives the plot forward. The setting isn’t cosmetic; it grounds the entire narrative in authentic cultural practice.

Ethnicity of characters

All characters are Japanese, and the voice cast reflects this appropriately: Art Parkinson voices Kubo, Charlize Theron plays the mother, and Ralph Fiennes voices Moon King. The film treats its Japanese identity seriously rather than treating it as exotic backdrop — a choice well-documented by Nerdophiles as one of the film’s distinguishing strengths.

Is Kubo and the Two Strings entirely stop-motion?

Yes — every single frame of Kubo and the Two Strings is stop-motion animation. According to the Laika Wiki, the studio produced the film entirely using this labor-intensive technique, with no significant CGI interpolation.

Animation techniques used

Stop-motion at Laika means what it always has meant: physical puppets manipulated frame by frame, with each tiny movement photographed separately. For Kubo specifically, the studio pushed their technical capabilities further than ever before, using 3D-printed parts and new fabrication methods to achieve the film’s distinctive look. The visual style features textured surfaces and intricate costumes inspired by Japanese folklore, as documented by Midlibrary.

Behind-the-scenes details

Director Travis Knight, making his directorial debut after serving as animation director on earlier Laika films, brought the same painstaking attention that the studio is known for. According to Laika Wiki, the team built elaborate miniature sets and hundreds of unique puppets to bring Kubo’s world to life.

What this means: choosing Kubo means choosing the unique aesthetic rewards of stop-motion over the fluid polish of CGI, and accepting that certain visual limitations are simply part of the craft.

Is there going to be a Kubo 2?

No official sequel to Kubo and the Two Strings has been announced as of this writing. Laika has not confirmed any sequel development, and no studio timeline exists for a potential continuation.

Sequel status

The absence of announcements stands in contrast to fan enthusiasm that has persisted since the 2016 release. Search results sometimes surface rumors of a 2022 release or sequel plans, but these appear to be unverified speculation rather than confirmed information.

Fan concepts

Online communities have generated concept art and story theories for a potential sequel, but these remain fan-generated ideas with no connection to Laika’s official production pipeline. The studio has released other projects — including Missing Link in 2019 and Wildwood in 2026 — but has not signaled Kubo sequel plans.

The implication: if you’re watching Kubo hoping for , treat it as a standalone experience. The film tells a complete story, and any future continuation remains purely speculative.

Why does Kubo only have one eye?

Kubo’s missing eye is central to the film’s plot and emotional core. According to Wikipedia, Kubo is a 12-year-old boy whose left eye was stolen in infancy — taken by his grandfather, the Moon King.

Plot backstory

The Moon King is Kubo’s grandfather, and his motive is chillingly personal: he sought to prevent Kubo from growing too powerful through storytelling. By stealing Kubo’s eye as an infant, he believed the boy would be unable to control the magical origami that runs in the family bloodline.

Family revelations

The film builds to revelations about Kubo’s family: his mother Sariatu, who fled the Moon Kingdom to be with his human father Hanzo, a samurai warrior. Monkey, Kubo’s companion, is actually the mother in animal form — but the film keeps this from Kubo through a memory-erasing curse. Kubo never meets his father, who was killed before Kubo was born. The film’s climax involves Kubo confronting the Moon King and reclaiming his identity through the power of memories and storytelling.

What this means: Kubo’s single eye represents trauma, stolen heritage, and the film’s central question about whether stories can help us reclaim what was taken. It’s not a gimmick — it’s load-bearing symbolism.

“The violence and disturbing scenes and themes make it unsuitable for children under 9 years.”

— Raising Children Network (Australian parenting guide)

“Memories are the strongest magic of all and can never be destroyed.”

— Film narrative, Wikipedia

For families with children old enough to handle its themes, Kubo and the Two Strings offers something rare in animation: a film that respects both the emotional intelligence of kids and the cultural depth of its source material. The trade-off is real — this isn’t a film you’ll set for a four-year-old on a rainy afternoon — but for the right audience, it’s an experience that lingers long after the credits roll. Parents seeking similarly ambitious animated features might also explore other critically acclaimed family films that balance artistic vision with age-appropriate content.

While Kubo blends folklore with family-friendly stop-motion, Memoir of a Snail parents guide highlights mature themes earning an R rating from the MPAA.

Frequently asked questions