You're appearing in K: Missing Kings film. What do you bring through the new character of Yukari Mishakuji, and how did they approach you to do this role?
Masakazu Morita: [Yukari Mishakuji] is a new type of character in K. One of the reasons this character is a new type, is that this is a very pretty male character. However, he talks like he's a female. That being said, this character doesn't fit in the typical mold of the effeminate male type. He just happens to talk like a female. He's actually a very strong character. There is a character named Kuro, who has already been in the series, and Yukari's ahead of him.
In this theatrical release, the battle between the two will be the focus of the film. It's not that Yukari wants to defeat Kuro though, but the reason is a secret. In fact, the motives for his actions are not very obvious throughout the movie. One thing that is obvious is that beauty is the key to everything he does. So when that was presented to me, it was a little bit difficult since I didn't know the full motives behind the character. You probably know that the weapons in K is a katana. As such, Yukari was designed to fit the beauty of the katana and the samurai. That's something that I really want the overseas fans to look for.
You've acted in a lot of anime roles, including Ichigo from Bleach and Barnaby Brooks Jr. from Tiger & Bunny. You were also in several video game roles including Tidus from Final Fantasy X. Of the two, do you prefer acting in video games more or anime?
Masakazu Morita: As someone who enjoys both, I don't have a particularly strong preference. However, one thing that is interesting about games is that when I act I end up recording the entire storyline all at the same time. So there is definitely a more concentrated effort. This is an aspect of game recording that I really like.
On the other hand, with animation, there is more of a fan interaction over Twitter or through fan letters. These fan interactions are something that I really enjoy.
With games, they're self-paced and every player plays at his or her own pace and progress on their own so that they all end up having a different experience. However, with anime they all have a shared experience of watching that same episode. As an actor, I really like having that common experience amongst the people who experience it.
In a related question, if you were to fast forward career ten years into the future, which of the many roles you've played would you say best represents your legacy as a voice actor?
Masakazu Morita: Hmmmm....let's see. Well I'm forty-two this year, and I did the role of Tidus maybe around twelve or thirteen years ago. I loved him then, and I still love him now. However, if I think of what I might be doing ten years from now then the characters that I'm doing now may not represent me all that well at that time.
As I age, I will surely have a chance to play middle-aged men or even older-aged men. As I age, I would love to be able to play much more mature characters and have success at those roles. [phone ring] Haha, somebody's phone is ringing. Ah, that must be John. Haha.
As someone who's had an extensive career in voice acting, you must have had tons of interactions with other voice actors. Can you share any memorable instances or experiences with us between you and your fellow voice actors while recording an anime series?
Masakazu Morita: Just like in any other entertainment industry, including Japan, things happen every day. So something extraordinary might be happening but we've become so accustomed to it that we may have become numb to it. So we don't really know what's extraordinary anymore.
Not so much as a voice actor, but as a live action actor who's been on the stage, there were several instances where I think back to myself "that wasn't so good, I was just dead on the stage."
Let me rephrase that question. How about your most fun memories?
Masakazu Morita: This was in a relationship to a game that I was working on- [phone rings] Hi John. Haha. Anyways, there was an event for a game that I was working on where there was an event that required us to sing. Since I was in a marching band in high school, as a drummer, I was able to draw from that experience and create a formation for the seven of us to perform in. This was something memorable that I experienced recently.
Marching in itself is very difficult as there are lots of techniques involved, which is something that you can't teach yourself overnight. However, the fellow actors I was working with really impressed me in that they were able to learn the entire formation in about an hour and a half.
Was there a big difference in recording the role of Tidus in Final Fantasy X versus reprising his role Dissidia Final Fantasy?
Masakazu Morita: When I reprised the role of Tidus in Dissidia, over ten years had passed since I played Tidus in Final Fantasy X, which at that time there was no Tidus, so initially I was unsure if I could voice the character in the same way.
At the time when I first recorded Tidus, I believe I was only twenty-six or twenty-seven. Since that time, my voice has changed a bit and I was a bit concerned that it would be the same voice. In between the time I recorded Tidus, I had recorded voices for Ichigo from Bleach and Keiji Maeda from Sengoku Basara, which were both voices in the lower range. I thought that these roles may have affected my vocal chord since they were lower.
When I returned to Tidus, I tried my best to record it similarly to what I had originally done. I was really glad when the voice director came to me and told me that my voice hadn't changed. It's so good to be really young throughout haha.
In Saint Seiya: the Hades Chapter, you stepped into the role of Pegasus Seiya. How was it playing that character? Did you take any cues from Toru Furuya or did the voice director give you some specific directions? How was it working on that series?
Masakazu Morita: There wasn't a whole lot of direction. I didn't talk to Furuya-san and he didn't give me any advice, nor did the voice director give me any special instructions on how to play him.
I think when Furuya-san's Saint Seiya came out, I was in eighth grade and I was really a huge fan of Saint Seiya and Pegasus. To create the character, I got my inspiration from the original work.
In Japan right now, there is a full CG version of Saint Seiya and Pegasus is currently being played by another voice actor. However, I would love to reprise that role and continue to provide dreams and hopes for the children who really enjoyed that series.
Can you tell us about your role in Sengoku Basara: Judge End?
Masakazu Morita: Judge End actually just started yesterday, and in comparison with the other Sengoku Basaras, the role might be a little bit quieter. My character doesn't actually appear until the later episodes.
Since it just aired, I'm really curious to see what the fan reaction is going to be like. I'm curious but it's also a little bit frightening as well. One thing that I will say about this Sengoku Basara is that this particular iteration has very powerful artwork, and I believe this strength will be conveyed to people who watch the show.
Keiji is actually one of the main characters in the game, but do you feel as though he may have taken a back seat in the anime?
Masakazu Morita: Haha, I think you stepped on the mine. In number two, along with a movie, Keiji was the main character however since then it feels as though he isn't the main character. In number three there was Ieyasu, who was one of the principle leads and I've been wondering when Keiji's turn would be coming. However, story has progressed since then I'm worried that may not happen.
You've had a very long and extensive career, but what would you say was your most difficult challenge either in your career or hobbies? And of all the roles you've played, which character would you say that you're the most connected to personality-wise?
Masakazu Morita: It's really an interesting thing. The easiest, hardest and character that I like the most is Tidus. While I've played a lot of roles, Tidus was the only one where I didn't really have to do any character study.
When I first played the role in Final Fantasy X, I was really just acting as myself. Although it was initially easy, at one point I began to feel quite scared. Since Final Fantasy is such a popular series worldwide, I felt that a lot of people would get to know me if I acted as myself. So had people not liked that character, it would have been like they were denying me. That was a very fearful thought.
To tell you how similar Tidus and I are, I hid some of the lines during the original recording and just reacted how I would interact with the other characters on screen. In many cases, they were exactly the same as what I would say personally. So in the end, the choice and the thought process with Tidus were really all the same. I realized that if this character was not accepted by fans around the world, then fans would be denying me and everything that I've done so far. That was extremely scary.
Tidus was me and I was Tidus and we were both one in the same. The only thing I could do was do the best that I could so that's what I did. As an optimist, I did realize that if everyone hated Tidus, then I would just need to wake up the next morning and do the complete opposite. Then everyone would love me! I realized that was a great way to succeed.
I think that really goes for anyone. If people don't really like the way that you currently are, you can just turn everything that was black today into white tomorrow and everyone would love you for it. I think that sort of mentality has definitely led to the person that I am now.
In the end, everyone loved Tidus so I still don't really know if what I had been doing was good or bad or what. I don't really know if I'm doing the right thing, so I may have missed out on the opportunity to mature.
