Anouck Hautbois
Marinette / Ladybug (voice)
Miraculous World: New York, United HeroeZ
“New city. Same duty.”
2020
1h 1m
Director: Thomas Astruc
Overview
Marinette's class is headed to New York, the city of superheroes, for French-American Friendship Week. But the arrival of Hawk Moth will complicate everything.
Cast
12 people
Reviews
4 min readThe City That Never Sleeps, the Hero Who Couldn’t
I’ve always been suspicious of superhero stories that transplant their heroes to new cities. There’s something inherently awkward about it—like watching a fish try to navigate a subway system. The rules change, the stakes feel borrowed, and the whole enterprise risks becoming a tourist brochure with capes. Miraculous World: New York, United HeroeZ could have been exactly that.
Instead, it’s something far more interesting: a story about what happens when the weight of responsibility becomes too heavy to carry, even for a hero.
The film follows Marinette Dupain-Cheng (Ladybug) and Adrien Agreste (Cat Noir) as they travel to New York for French-American Friendship Week. The premise is simple: new city, new villains, new allies. But the emotional core isn’t about the skyline or the Statue of Liberty—it’s about the fracture in the partnership between Ladybug and Cat Noir.
Adrien, overwhelmed by the burden of being a hero, abandons his post in Paris, leaving Marinette to navigate the chaos alone. It’s a bold choice for a children’s story, one that doesn’t shy away from the idea that even the people we rely on can fail us.
Thomas Astruc, the series’ creator, has always been more interested in the emotional mechanics of heroism than in spectacle for its own sake. Here, he uses the change of scenery to strip away the familiar. Paris is Ladybug’s home turf—its alleys, its landmarks, its rhythms are second nature to her.
New York, by contrast, is a maze of towering buildings and unfamiliar faces. The city’s scale mirrors the scale of her isolation. When Cat Noir disappears, she’s not just fighting villains; she’s fighting the creeping realization that she might have to do this alone.
The animation, as noted by Bubbleblabber, is spectacular—smooth, vibrant, and full of kinetic energy. The fight scenes are particularly well-choreographed, with a sense of weight and impact that makes the action feel tangible. But what’s most striking is how the film uses its visuals to underscore its themes.
Buzz & Rumors
Public reportsInside the Making of Miraculous World: New York, United HeroeZ—Astruc’s High-Stakes Spin-Off
Miraculous World: New York, United HeroeZ (2020) marked a bold leap for the Miraculous franchise, transplanting Ladybug and Cat Noir from Paris to the skyscrapers of New York City. As the first feature-length special in the series, the movie carried pressure: it had to deliver the charm of the original show while expanding its universe. Director Thomas Astruc, the mastermind behind Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug & Cat Noir, latestnetflix.com maintains, faced both creative opportunities and fandom scrutiny—some of which spilled into public view.
A New York State of Mind
The special’s premise was simple but ambitious: Marinette and Adrien travel to New York for a school exchange, only to stumble into a battle between local superheroes and a fresh villain. The shift from Paris to New York wasn’t just a change of scenery—it was a test of the franchise’s global appeal. The 55-minute runtime 
packed in new allies (the "United HeroeZ" team) and a villain tied to the city’s lore, proving Miraculous could adapt without losing its core identity.
Astruc’s direction leaned into the franchise’s signature blend of comedy, action, and youthful energy. The special retained the show’s animation style but upped the stakes with New York’s iconic landmarks as backdrops. Critics and fans noted the film’s brisk pacing, though its 6.3/10 rating on SensCritique suggested it didn’t quite reach the heights of the series’ best episodes.
Fandom Friction and Astruc’s Reputation
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=62lMHzaYiWU
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f7_9gRlph-w
Behind the scenes, Astruc’s relationship with the Miraculous fandom was already rocky. The director’s outspoken personality and creative choices had sparked controversy before, and New York, United HeroeZ became another flashpoint. Some fans criticized the special’s handling of new characters, while others accused Astruc of prioritizing spectacle over storytelling . The backlash wasn’t universal—many praised the film’s diversity and fresh dynamics—but the divide highlighted the challenges of expanding a beloved franchise.
Astruc’s tendency to engage with criticism (or dismiss it) only fueled the fire. Videos like "Thomas Astruc Has Upset The Miraculous Fandom… Again" and "The Never-Ending Thomas Astruc Controversy" underscored the tension between the creator and his audience. Whether the drama was overblown or justified, it became part of the Miraculous lore.
Legacy and What’s Next
Despite the mixed reception, New York, United HeroeZ paved the way for future Miraculous World specials, including Shanghai (2021) and London (2024). The New York special’s willingness to experiment—even imperfectly—set a precedent for the franchise’s global ambitions. Its 55-minute runtime and mid-tier ratings didn’t make it a standout, but it proved Miraculous could survive outside Paris.
For better or worse, the special also cemented Astruc’s reputation as a polarizing figure. Love him or loathe him, his vision shaped Miraculous’s evolution—and New York, United HeroeZ was a key chapter in that story.
Entertainment rumors and trivia aggregated from public reporting. Treat speculation as unverified unless a cited source confirms it.