Netflix has found its Straw Hat Pirates for the upcoming live-action One Piece series.
As reported by Variety, the streaming service announced the five main cast members who will portray One Piece's protagonists, the Straw Hat Pirates, which include Iñaki Godoy (Go, Youth!, Who Killed Sara?) as Monkey D. Luffy, Mackenyu (Rurouni Kenshin: Final Chapter, Pacific Rim: Uprising) as Roronoa Zoro, Emily Rudd (Fear Street, Hunters) as Nami, Jacob Romero Gibson (Greenleaf, All Rise) as Usopp and Taz Skylar (Boiling Point, Villain) as Sanji.
"We've been working with Netflix and Tomorrow Studios on the massive project that is the Hollywood live action series adaptation of One Piece!" said Eiichiro Oda, executive producer and author of the original One Piece manga. "How many years has it been since it was announced, right? I know, I know! But rest assured we've been making steady progress all along. It's not easy when you’re working with people from different cultures! But it's precisely that process that can yield something special!"
Oda continued, "We decided on this cast after numerous discussions involving people around the world! These are the people who will be our Straw Hat Pirates! It'll take a bit more time to get this show done, but we'll continue to do our best to deliver a show that we're confident will be enjoyed by everyone around the world!"
Steven Maeda will serve as the live-action series' showrunner, along with his co-writer and fellow executive producer Matt Owens. "We are so excited to set sail with this amazing and talented cast," Maeda and Owens said in a joint statement. "Finding the right people to pull off the looks, emotions, and actions of the iconic Straw Hats was a long and challenging (and fun!) process. Much like the search for the One Piece itself. But we have finally found the perfect fits! They have already begun working very hard to bring these characters to life. You will come to know and love them just as much as their manga counterparts. All of us can't wait to show you what we've come up with! Onward to adventure!"
The series is being produced by Tomorrow Studios, which is also involved in Netflix's other anime adaptation, Cowboy Bebop. Based on the manga of the same name, the One Piece anime series spans 20 seasons and 14 movies and follows the elastic Luffy on his journey to find the One Piece treasure and name himself as King of the Pirates. First announced in 2017, Netflix ordered 10 episodes of the live-action series in January of this year.
Netflix's One Piece does not yet have a release date.
Source: Variety