Actress Yoshikawa Ai has been cast as the main character, Raya, in the dubbed Japanese version of “Raya and the Last Dragon,” the latest Disney film based on “Anna and the Snow Queen,” to be released on March 5, 2021.
“Raya and the Last Dragon” is an epic fantasy adventure that depicts the battles and growth of a young girl, Raya, in the “Dragon Kingdom”.
The story begins with Raya, the daughter of a family that guards the “Dragon Stone,” which is said to contain the power of a holy dragon, setting out on her own to revive the power of the “last dragon” that disappeared a long time ago and restore peace to the world.
This time, actress Yoshikawa Ai has been chosen to be the voice of the main character, Raya, dubbed in Japanese. This will be Yoshikawa-san’s first attempt at voice acting.
Yoshikawa-san, who is a big fan of Disney, said about her selection for the role of Raya, expressing her pressure as well as pleasure, “I thought I would never get the positionjob, so when I heard that I had been accepted, I couldn’t believe it, ‘Is this real? I couldn’t believe it. At first, I was happy, but since it was my first time to do voice acting for Disney, I was getting more and more nervous.”
As for dubbing, she said, “Usually in dramas and movies, I can express myself well with my facial expressions and movements, but it’s very difficult to express myself with just my voice,” she said, confessing that she had different difficulties from usual.
As for the overlap between Raya and herself, she said, “I myself have a tendency to be overly cautious about people I meet for the first time, so I thought I could relate to Raya. It’s not that I had something in my past like Raya, but as I grew older, I became more cautious.” On the other hand, Raya is skilled in martial arts, “I’m not very athletic, so I felt jealous while dubbing. (laughs)” she smiled.
She also said, “Tuk Tuk that travels with us is a particularly soothing character, but all the characters are really cute.” Finally, she talked about the appeal of the film, “I think it’s a really wonderful film that teaches us that it’s important to believe in each other to become one, and that if you believe in the other personyourself, the other person will believe in you as well.
The movie “Raya and the Last Dragon” will be released simultaneously in theaters and “Disney Plus Premiere Access” nationwide on March 5, 2021.
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