Like many a great cinematic ensemble, “One Piece” did global open casting, which meant the talent pool was bigger and gave more opportunity to people who would normally not be cast in a high-profile title like this — international actors and relatively less-known actors — which resulted in the actors looking exactly like their animated counterparts. Likewise, having the manga’s author himself approve of each casting choice added to the faithfulness of the show.
Just look at Iñaki Godoy and the way he acts in interviews and behind-the-scenes material. The guy doesn’t just look like Luffy, he embodies him — even Eiichiro Oda thinks so — his optimism, and his enthusiasm. This applies to the rest of the cast, who look and act as if they leapt from the pages, whether it’s Emily Rudd delivering Nami’s big moment of vulnerability or Mackenyu bringing Zoro’s fighting to life. And yet, what is most thrilling in the show is seeing the changes, both obvious and more subtle.
Zoro is not as goofy as in the manga, but broodier. However, when he does joke around, it hits harder because it feels earned. Zoro is still the first one to be a fully-fledged crewmember and to believe in Luffy, but it still takes him a while to show it, and Mackenyu perfectly captures that.
For Sanji, his perviness is dialed down significantly (for the better), but Taz Skylar still translates the character’s love-struck nature and very unsuccessful flirty side. Even Usopp changes quite a bit. Because of the shortened runtime, we see him cowardly run away less than in the manga, and he comes across as a more genuine guy with sensible fears but also big courage. Likewise, Jacob Romero Gibson gets the honor of being the first and only crewmember to kiss someone in the show.
