The popular game franchise, Sonic the Hedgehog, is back with its third movie. The series is all set to premiere in January 2025. Unsurprisingly, it is one of the most popular and celebrated game franchises of all time.
With its third movie in the works, the Sonic staff revealed its Japanese voice cast. This had several fans waiting with bated breath for the upcoming movie. But most importantly, their excitement has more to do with a certain voice actor.
Among Taishi Nakagawa and Aoi Yuki, Toshiyuki Morikawa is joining the cast. Morikawa has previously worked as a voice actor in notable anime such as Berserk and Naruto. Besides that, he has a diverse portfolio as a voice actor which certainly deserves recognition.
Naruto and Berserk VA joins Sonic the Hedgehog 3 cast
Sonic the Hedgehog 3 is one of the most awaited movies of 2024. The franchise has a worldwide viewership and fanbase. This also applies to most of its media, including games along films.
Its popularity is on par with Mario because of its engaging gameplay and likable characters. It is also one of the bestselling games that rival Mario in most aspects. This holds especially true with its movies and voice cast.
The film series is considered peak in its casting of Jim Carrey. Along with James Marsden and Jason Momoa, Carrey returns as the iconic Doctor Eggman.
It was one of the highest-grossing movies in 2020, but that is not all. With the upcoming movie, the directors are notching up the standards through the Japanese voice cast. This is especially true in the case of Shadow’s voice actor.
Sonic staff revealed the Japanese voice cast for the upcoming movie. Naruto voice actor Toshiyuki Morikawa will play Shadow. And this is how fans reacted:
Shadow’s Japanese Voice Actor is Toshiyuki Morikawa, the voice of Sephiroth! #SonicMovie3 https://t.co/TacIVcM6J2 pic.twitter.com/0RtyH4X0fH
— Genki✨ (@Genki_JPN) November 20, 2024
THATS SO COOL
— 🌴SpeederLight🌴 (@SpeederLight1) November 20, 2024
THE GOAT?! pic.twitter.com/AGk5eAyNVF
— YamiNetto (@YamiNetto_0) November 20, 2024
mind you, he has been Keanu Reeves dub actor for a while already, including dubs like the John Wick movies, Matrix redubs, Toy Story 4, and even Cyberpunk 2077
— Talentless Santi 🇵🇾 (@CamachoWalder) November 20, 2024
That’s cooler than Keanu reeves ngl
— y0av d0nt m7ss 🇻🇺🇲🇰🇲🇭🇩🇲🌪️🪼 (@yoavdontmiss) November 20, 2024
Apart from his role as Griffith and Minato, Morikawa voiced diverse characters. From games to anime, he has lent his roles in several notable and diverse projects.
Diversity and versatility of Toshiyuki Morikawa
Toshiyuki Morikawa is popular for his role of the Fourth Hokage, also known as, Minato Namikaze in Naruto. Along with the late Emi Shinohara, he brought the character to life. By far it is one of his iconic roles in the anime.
Apart from Kishimoto’s series, the voice actor played major roles in the Big 3 anime. He voiced the role of the Skypiea God Enel in the One Piece anime. And surprisingly, he also lent his voice to the goofy yet badass Isshin Kurosaki in the Bleach series. His portfolio of work, however, is more diverse.
Apart from voicing badass characters, he also played the role of Griffith in the 1997 anime Berserk. Undoubtedly, he is one of the most hated characters in Kentaro Miura’s series. This adds to the finesse and prowess of the voice actor.
Morikawa has also played fatherly roles in anime like Shinchan and Demon Slayer. But that doesn’t negate his versatility as a voice artist. As for the upcoming movie, his role is nothing short of iconic.
Sonic The Hedgehog 3 is set to premiere on 20th December 2024.
