Finding actors to bring the characters of a beloved animated or illustrated property to life in live-action is no small feat. Those actors have to not only be believable in terms of appearance but also in terms of their personality and performance relative to the character. For the beloved seriesOne Piece, which consists of enough anime episodes and manga chapters to fill a pirate ship without counting all the movies, video games, and other media, that’s especially true as fans have spent so long getting to knowthe Straw Hat Piratesand their captain Monkey D. Luffy. Knowing the importance of getting the cast right, the team behind the Netflix adaptation spared no expense in finding the perfect fit for the crew members ofthe Going Merry.
In an interview with Collider’sArezou Amin, showrunnerSteven Maedagave some insight into the process behind finding the Straw Hats. The crew they ended up with, includingIñaki Godoyas the endlessly optimistic captain Luffy,Mackenyuas the three-sword style master Zoro,Emily Ruddas the fierce navigator Nami,Jacob Romeroas the cheerful sharpshooter Usopp, andTaz Skylaras the skilled chef with a deadly kick Sanji, has been a point of praise for the series, even earning the stamp ofapproval fromOne PiecemangakaEiichiro Odahimself. Bringing them aboard required an extensive search, however. Finding actors that fit their roles was one thing, but theStraw Hats are a merry crewbound together as a found family, so the chemistry between the stars was a must.
“Definitely looking for chemistry between them, actors who really embodied the parts, and I think we found them in a major way, which I feel incredibly blessed and fortunate,” Maeda said of the casting process. “To do so, we had a wonderful duo of casting directors,Libby [Goldstein]andJunie [Lowry], who scoured the earth, truly, to find these characters.” The five-time Emmy winner Goldstein and eight-time Emmy winner Lowry are two of the best casting directors in the game whose fingerprints are all overYellowjackets,True Blood, andSix Feet Under, among many others. This was a monumental undertaking for them, though, considering the pressure of massive, varying expectations andthe anime/manga adaptation curselooming overhead.
Eiichiro Oda Gave theOne PieceTeam Guidance on Finding the Straw Hats
Oda was also involvedin the casting process to some degree. He had notes for the team regarding each character, though Maeda admits they weren’t afraid to deviate a bit if it meant reeling in someone who was perfect for their role. “We looked everywhere for them and also had some of Oda-san’s blessing, as far as what these characters would look like if they were from our world. He had written notes about Zoro being Japanese and about Luffy being Brazilian, which we got close - Luffy is a Mexican actor, Iñaki Godoy. But we really tried to find actors who embodied these characters, were very natural, and then had great chemistry.” In Godoy’s case, that turned out for the best. Not only did hemake a strong first impression, butOda couldn’t imagine a better live-action Luffyafter seeing him on-screen.
It takes a crew to keep the good shipOne Pieceafloat, however, and everyone did their part to make this series something special. In terms of the cast, DirectorMarc Jobstfocused oncreating a comfortable environmentto bring out the best in his Straw Hats while cinematographerNicole Whitakerworked to adapt some of the wackier characters like Buggy the Clownto the screen. So many hands came together to give Oda’s masterwork to life in a way that honors his original work while making it digestible for newcomers to the series.
