In what is sad news for many anime fans, notable One Piece voice actor Hideyuki Umezu has died recently, as confirmed by voice actor agency 81 Produce.
Umezu’s death was announced by the agency yesterday, May 21, via an official update on its website. There, Umezu’s cause of death was confirmed.
As is the case with deaths in the anime and manga industry, Umezu’s passing was announced some days after it happened, with a funeral ceremony held only for close family and friends.
81 Produce Confirms Hideyuki Umezu Dies at Age 68
Hideyuki Umezu died at age 68, with his official cause of death being interstitial pneumonia. It’s not clear if Umezu’s illness was only recent, as the private lives of talents in Japan are often not disclosed.
Umezu began working as a voice actor in the 80s, and over the decades, he has voiced a lot of roles in iconic anime.
Before becoming a voice actor though, Umezu acted in period dramas. He has also been cast regularly in an array of tokusatsu live-action shows from the 90s to the 2000s.
Umezu is also known for his work as a Japanese dub actor in Western live-action and animated films.
For instance, he is the Japanese voice of Zazu in The Lion King, Merlin in Transformers: The Last Knight, and Arthur Weasley in the Harry Potter movies.
In anime though, Umezu is perhaps best known for his role as Diamante in One Piece, a member of the Donquixote Pirates and one of the primary antagonists in the series’ Dressrosa arc.
Umezu is also the voice of Barry the Chopper in Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood, Gengetsu Hozuki in Naruto, and Akadama in The Eccentric Family.
ALSO READ: One Piece Filler List: What Arcs Can You Skip?
What Will Happen to Umezu’s Voice Roles?
For long-running anime characters, the death of a voice actor typically means that a new VA will be hired to take their place. This is the case with shows such as Lupin III.
As for Umezu, while he has played lots of characters over the decades, his last anime role was in 2022, meaning he wasn’t playing a major role in an ongoing series at the time of his death.
One Piece is perhaps the only exception, though Diamante has not appeared following the Dressrossa arc.
If he does return at some point in the anime, chances are that a new VA will take his place.
Given the fate of Diamante at the end of the arc, he likely won’t play a big role in the final arc’s events.
Do you have a favorite character by Umezu? Let us know in the comments.
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