The Kingdoms of Ruin recently announced that it will replace Junya Ikeda with a new voice actor. This comes following Ikeda’s arrest on Monday in Japan.
The anime’s voice actor change was revealed via the show’s official website and X (formerly Twitter) account. Not a lot of info has been shared yet, though the announcement did acknowledge Ikeda’s arrest.
This comes as no surprise. After all, Ikeda’s arrest is a pretty big one and is much more of a difficult situation than other voice actor controversies.
Junya Ikeda Arrested Yesterday for Alleged Fraud
Junya Ikeda is a Japanese actor who is best known for playing Gai Ikari/Gokai Silver, the sixth ranger of the Gokaigers in Kaizoku Sentai Gokaiger.
Ikeda has also voiced characters in several anime shows. For instance, he voiced Millions Knives in the Trigun Stampede 3D anime by studio Orange. He also voiced Joe Kido in Digimon Adventure.
On Monday, talent agency BaRU announced that they had canceled Ikeda’s contract following the actor’s arrest.
The agency also shared that they have not been in contact with Ikeda since the arrest as he’s barred from interviews.
According to the agency’s statement, Ikeda has been arrested for special fraud. The statement did not go into detail about the case.
A report by NHK stated that Ikeda is the suspect in a fraud case. Based on the report, the suspect in the case posed as a police officer and defrauded a man of his cash card in the man’s home in Koto, Tokyo.
ALSO READ: Popular Anime Composer Arrested for Allegedly Capturing Illicit Footage of a Schoolgirl
The Kingdoms of Ruin: Ikeda to Be Replaced by New VA
Given that Ikeda has been arrested, it follows that he will be replaced in The Kingdoms of Ruin anime. This was soon confirmed by the anime’s production staff.
In the series, Ikeda voices Oz Gorgeous, a supporting character. There’s no word yet on who will replace Ikeda as Oz, though the staff’s statement confirmed that the new voice actor will be revealed sometime soon.
Aside from The Kingdoms of Ruin, Ikeda is not voicing any character in an ongoing anime.
This is not the first time that an anime voice actor made waves because of a controversy. For instance, Suguru Geto VA Takahiro Sakurai also generated controversy following an extramarital affair.
Unlike Sakurai who continues to play Geto, the severity of Ikeda’s issue means he likely won’t be getting any new voice acting roles soon.
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READ NEXT: Where to Read The Kingdoms of Ruin Manga Online
Sources: Anime News Network, NHK
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