miHoYo, the Chinese developer of Genshin Impact, has released an official statement which asserts that the Japanese voice actor for the upcoming character Ifa has been replaced "due to various circumstances" (nice spot, Automaton).
Showtaro Morikubo was originally announced as the Japanese voice actor for Ifa before his sudden removal shocked fans. Morikubo is a prolific voice actor, active in anime, audiobooks, video games and more since the mid-90s. A couple of his recent notable roles include Gomah from Dragon Ball Daima and Lucas from Rune Factory 5. Ifa doesn't currently have a release date, but regardless of when the character releases, Morikubo will no longer voice him.
While Morikubo has yet to give a statement on his removal, fans have already begun speculating that the entire affair may have been politically motivated. In August 2024, Morikubo participated in a live reading of Inochigake no Shougen (Life-Threatening Testimonies), a book by Japanese author Tomomi Shimizu. Inochigake no Shougen is a book about the Chinese government's treatment of Uyghurs, an ethnic group primarily found in the Chinese autonomous region of Xinjiang. The book contains testimonies from persecuted Uyghurs, with Shimizu labelling the Chinese government's actions as genocidal.
Amnesty...
