Netflix’s One Piece Zoro star Mackenyu apparently built his body for a new anime role over the past three years. The Japanese actor has made a name for himself in anime live-action adaptations over the years by embodying several different roles. From villains and heroes to supporting characters, Mackenyu has proven to be the perfect actor for live-action adaptations. However, no role has earned him a reputation quite like Zoro, and there is little he could do to top it. While the first season saw him bringing Zoro to life, the second season took his portrayal to the next level, thanks to its action sequences and the physique the actor built for the role.
A still from the second season of the series reveals that Mackenyu has been putting in the work to make Zoro look more accurate. However, his latest anime role reveals that all this preparation was actually for a different character, as Mackenyu himself confirmed. It was recently revealed that a live-action movie adaptation of the underrated magical comedy series, Mashle: Magic and Muscles, is set to release on March 19, 2027, with Mackenyu playing the role of Mash, for which he looks perfect. A detailed report shared by Oricon Japan following an interview reveals that this was no coincidence, as Mackenyu has been preparing for this role.
In the interview shared by Oricon Japan, it was revealed that when the live-action adaptation of Mashle was greenlit, the series’ director, Yuichi Fukuda, offered Mackenyu the lead role of Mash Burnedead just five seconds after the announcement. While Mackenyu immediately expressed his excitement about landing the role, he then spent the next three years building muscle for the character. The interview also reveals that the director was concerned about potential filming conflicts with Mackenyu’s role as Zoro in One Piece. With two seasons already filmed over the past three years and the third season now wrapping up, Mackenyu likely only got to film the movie recently.
In the meantime, while portraying Zoro, it is evident that Mackenyu continued training and building muscle, developing the physique needed for his upcoming role as Mash in the live-action movie. Considering that he filmed the movie recently, possibly after One Piece Season 3, Mackenyu could look bigger and better than he did as Zoro in Netflix’s One Piece Season 2. Even the series’ original creator, Hajime Komoto, visited the set during filming, and his biggest highlight was seeing Mackenyu’s physique. Although the teaser released so far does not fully showcase the muscles Mackenyu has built for the role, his expressions and the first close-up reveal that he is perfect for the character.
While the past three years of preparation made it seem that Mackenyu was building his physique to portray Zoro more accurately, his latest remarks reveal that his main focus was actually Mash. In essence, fans got to see Mackenyu’s physique change drastically between the first and second seasons of Netflix’s One Piece as a side effect of his preparation for a new anime role. And the first look reveals that his new character could be an even more perfect fit than Zoro.
