Toshio Furukawa

Dragon Ball is a franchise that’s been loved for an extraordinarily long time. There’s constant recording sessions for games and things like that, so it feels like it’s never ended. Even so, I didn’t expect to see a continuation of the franchise, so “happy” is the only word I can come up with to describe it starting up again. I’m happy to be a part of it!

I’ve played roles in a lot of franchises, but Piccolo is my favorite character. I’m really glad to be able to play him again, and I want to throw my entire body and soul into bringing out his charm. I’m also looking forward to more Piccolo merchandise being released. My manager sends me Piccolo merchandise, but I’ll have already preordered it myself (laughs).

New enemies always pop up with each new series. This time I guess it’ll be Beerus and Whis? There’s still a lot I don’t know yet about how the story’s going to unfold, but I’m keeping an eye out for new characters.

Our teamwork is really good, and each recording session is fun. We went out to eat after the first session wrapped up, and Mako-san (Masako Nozawa) said “Forget one or five years, I want this to go on for ten years” like it would never end. Honestly, I’d be happy for it to continue like that.

I consider Dragon Ball a touchstone franchise that represents Japan. Thanks to all the fans, I hope it will continue to be passed down to a third and fourth generation, and I hope people will keep on supporting it.