How to Fix Broken Subtitle Characters (Mojibake) in 2026

You sit down to watch a movie, load the subtitles, and suddenly...

C'est la vie becomes C'est la vié Español becomes Español

Instead of enjoying the film, you're trying to decipher alien hieroglyphics. This improper display of characters is techically called Mojibake (garbled text), and it happens when your video player guesses the wrong Character Encoding.

In this guide, we'll show you how to fix this instantly for VLC, Plex, Smart TVs, and more.

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The 1-Minute Fix (Recommended)

The easiest way to fix encoding issues is to convert your subtitle file to UTF-8. UTF-8 is the universal standard that works on almost every modern device.

Use our free tool to fix it automatically:

1. Upload your .srt file.
2. Select "SRT" as the output format (yes, even if it's already SRT).
3. Click Convert.
4. Download the new file. It is now standard UTF-8.

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Why Is This Happening?

Computer files are just strings of numbers. "Encoding" tells the computer which number represents which letter.

• Windows-1252 (ANSI): Common on older Windows PCs. Used specific numbers for accents like é or ñ.
• UTF-8: The modern web standard. Uses different numbers for those same accents.

If your file is saved as UTF-8 but your TV thinks it's Windows-1252, it misinterprets the numbers, resulting in garbage text like "é".

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Fix for Specific Players

VLC Media Player

If you don't want to convert the file, you can force VLC to read it correctly:

1. Open VLC.
2. Go to Preferences (Tools > Preferences).
3. Click the Subtitles / OSD tab.
4. Under "Default encoding", change it from "Default (Windows-1252)" to Universal (UTF-8).
5. Restart VLC.

Plex Media Server

Plex is very strict—it demands UTF-8. If your subtitles look wrong or don't show up at all, it's 99% likely because they aren't UTF-8.

• Fix: Use the Subtitle Converter method above. Plex does not have a "force encoding" setting; the file must be correct.

Samsung / LG / Sony Smart TVs

Smart TVs are notoriously bad at guessing encoding. They often default to the regional standard (e.g., Arabic encoding in the Middle East, Western encoding in Europe).

• Fix: Convert the file to UTF-8 with BOM.
  • Some TVs need a specific "signature" (BOM) at the start of the file to know it's UTF-8.
  • Our converter handles this compatibility automatically.

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Summary

Don't let bad characters ruin movie night.

• The Problem: Mismatched encoding (ANSI vs UTF-8).
• The Solution: Convert the file to UTF-8.
• The Tool: IntlPull Subtitle Converter (Free & Client-Side).