Jump Festa 2025 has been filled with big announcements, and a definite highlight forOne Piecefans was the announcement of Franky’s new Japanese voice actor.One Piecefans were shocked whenFranky’s Japanese voice actor, Kazuki Yao, announced his retirement. Though the beloved actor’s interpretation of Franky will certainly be missed, the new actor chosen is pitch-perfect casting.
At Jump Festa 2025,it was revealed that Kimura Subaru will replace Yao as Franky. The announcement started with a highlight reel of Fraanky’s greatest moments throughoutOne Piecebefore revealing that BLANK will take on the role in all futureOne Pieceprojects. Subaru stepped out onto the stage to hug Yao in a touching moment of a veteran actor passing on the torch. Yao himself was full of energy throughout the early portions ofOne Piece’spanel during Jump Festa 2025, wearing matching vacation attire alongside the other Straw Hat pirate voice actors.
Who is Kimura Subaru, Franky’s New Voice Actor in One Piece?
Far from a rookie,Subaru is a voice actor best known for voicing Aoi Todo inJujutsu Kaisen. He has also voiced prominent characters such Pesci inJoJo’s Bizarre Adventure Golden Wind, Sakuragi inThe First Slam Dunk, and Tendo inHaikyu!!. With his history of playing larger-than-life characters like Todo, Subaru is a perfect choice for a character like Franky. Franky’s first voice actor clearly thinks so too, as Yao showed great confidence in his successor.One Piece’sofficial X accountcelebrated the casting in a post.
[Important Notice] TV anime “ONE PIECE” Subaru Kimura has been chosen to replace Kazuki Yao as Franky. Yao-san’s “super” will and With new friends, The Straw Hat Pirates' adventure continues.
Yao announced that he was stepping away from voicing Franky in aDecember 7th post to his X account. Yao, who voices several characters in the acclaimed anime, had previously given up his role as Jango to voice actor Wataru Takagi.One Piece’sofficial X account cited health reasons for the change, so it’s not surprising that Yao would also choose to step down from his role as Franky. Given that Yao started voicing Franky in 2005 when he was 46, it’s understandable why the actor would now feel a certain distance from his most iconic role.
2024 Has Been A Year Full of Change For One Piece’s Voice Actors
Yao Isn’t the First One Piece Voice Actor to Resign in 2024
Unfortunately, Yao isn’t the firstOne Piecevoice actor who had to step down from their role during the series' near quarter of a century run. Kaido’s voice actor, Tesshō Genda, stepped down from voicing the iconic warlord in July 2024 due to health concerns. That was afterKaido’s epic death inOne Piece’sWano arc, meaning the anime hasn’t necessarily needed to replace Genda yet, though it will if Kaido is ever needed in spin-off media or in flashbacks.
One Piece Just Hit an Emotional Fever Pitch With an Unexpected Straw Hat Reunion
One Piece finally shows the 22-year-in-the-making reunion that fans were waiting for, delivering one of the most emotional moments in the series.
The other big exit fans are likely to remember was Toru Furuya stepping down from voicing Luffy’s brother, Sabo. While Sabo is a fan-favorite character, Furuya (who also voices Yamcha inDragon Ball) came under fire for allegations of having an affair with a much younger woman. This was a big enough scandal that Furuya elected to resign from voicing Sabo, leading to leadNarutovoice actor Junko Takeuchi taking over the role.
While fans are very likely to feel differently about the replacement of Sabo’s voice actor compared to Kaido and Franky’s voice actor changes, it is interesting that all three have happened over the course of 2024. The good news for fans is thatOne Piecehas always had a stellar voice cast, and though Yao will be missed as Franky, Kimura Subaru is sure to do an excellent job as the iconic Straw Hat pirate.
One Piece
Cast
The One Piece anime began in 1999 and follows the adventures of Monkey D. Luffy, a boy with rubber-like abilities, as he embarks on a journey to find the legendary treasure “One Piece.” Inspired by the pirate Shanks, Luffy aims to become the King of the Pirates, accompanied by a diverse crew.
