Mackenyu is no stranger to live-action adaptations of anime and manga. He appeared in the Rurouni Kenshin films as well as recently having the leading role in a multi-national adaptation of Knights of the Zodiac.
Now, he has his next major role ahead of him in Netflix’s adaptation of the iconic manga by Eiichiro Oda, One Piece. In a new interview with GamesRadar, he shares what got him the role of Roronoa Zoro.
I’m like Zoro, maybe that’s what helped me book the role!
Mackenyu Arata
The answer gets quite straight to the point, but Mackenyu also has a lot to show which makes him a perfect choice to tackle a character famous for his sword-fighting skills. He has worked with multiple swords in the past but does highlight that having to fight with three swords, one being in his jaw, did require quite a bit of training.
I have experience using two swords simultaneously and have done live-action shows using swords in the past, but when it comes to three, that’s a different story. The training I did for One Piece was specific for Zoro and the skills needed to really be him. My jaw had on-the-job training!
Mackenyu Arata
It must’ve been challenging for the actor’s jaw to adjust to having to carry an entire sword. While it’s likely that they used some CG, he still had to hold a sword hilt in his mouth. We only got a glimpse of what he was capable of doing and we’ll have to wait just a bit longer to see his sword-fighting techniques in action once the first season releases on August 31st.
Source: GamesRadar
