The blockbuster “Aladdin”, a live-action version of Disney’s timeless masterpiece, was broadcast for the first time on TV uncut on “Friday Road Show” on May 21 (NTV, 09:00 P.). An entertainment work about the fateful love between people from different worlds, the poor main character Aladdin, who had been waiting for a life-changing chance, and the beautiful princess Jasmine, who is longing for freedom, and the magical lamp that can fulfill three wishes.
It is a live-action version of “Aladdin,” the animated Disney movie released in 1992, and received a great response when the release decision was announced. Furthermore, when it was reported that Will Smith will play the role of Genie, the spirit of the lamp, many fans said, “I would think only about Will Smith”, and “I knew”. Furthermore, when the visual was released, comments such as “I knew that Genie will look like this in a live-action film”, and “Blue Will Smith” were posted on SNS and became trends all over the world.
In Japan, Yamadera Koichi was chosen to dub Genie played by Will Smith also attracted a lot of attention. Yamadera-san, who voiced Genie in the animated version too, has been dubbing many other Disney works. Moreover, he often dubs Will Smith’s works that are being released in Japan, so, according to the fans, “It’s such a perfect casting!”, and “Only Yama-chan should do it!”
This time, I will explain how Yamadera-san became “the No.1 dubbing artist for Disney” and the secret story of the conversation with Will Smith.
■ How Yamadera-san became “the No.1 dubbing artist for Disney”?
As I explained at the beginning, Yamadera-san has appeared in many Disney works. Moreover, he voiced not just Genie, but also Donald Duck, the Beast of “Beauty and the Beast”, Sebastian of “Little Mermaid II Return to The Sea”, and the Stitch of “Lilo & Stitch” and other characters everyone knows.
Since “Disney” creates works that are loved by men and women of all ages, aside from anime and voice actor fans, other people also may have the impression that “Yamadera Koichi is Disney’s No.1 dubbing artist”.
The great thing about Yamadera-san is not “because he appears in famous works” or “because he plays characters that everyone knows.” While there are voice actors who use characteristics of their voices as weapons, Yamadera-san’s voice is not that special. However, the reason why it reaches people’s hearts is because of it’s “expressiveness”. The author feels that he is outstanding in hid ability to grasp the characteristics of the characters he plays and make them “memorable”..
In addition to voice changes, such as quality, tone, and pronunciation, Yamadera-san can also play characters using “sounds” with no lines. Donald Duck mentioned above uses his breath instead of his voice to make sounds like an instrument. The only way to come up with such an expression is to capture the character accurately. His Donald Duck performance was recognized by the Walt Disney Company, and a special clock and original picture were given.
Some people call Yamadera-san a “rainbow voice,” but there are not just 7 colors! He skillfully played 12 roles in “Anpanman”, 16 roles in “Yatterman”, and 50 roles in “Higanjima X”.
■ “Approved” by Will Smith himself!
Not only “Disney” but also “Will Smith’s No. 1 dubbing artist is Yamadera Koichi” was enriched by “Aladdin”.
Yamadera-san was in charge of dubbing Will in “I Am Legend” and “I, Robot” before. When the live-action version of “Aladdin” was announced, and it was revealed that Will would play the role of Genie, everyone thought, “No one else should put their hand on this role.”
Then, it was announced that he will voice Genie, and at the red carpet event held in Japan, he met Will for the first time. Will was delighted to meet Yamadera, saying, “It’s great to meet someone who speaks a different language.”
At the time of the movie release, a dialogue between the two people was realized in “news every.” There was a scene where Yamadera-san performed a dubbing of Genie live, and Will praised it very much, saying, “It’s really great!”. He became “Approved” by the real person.
■ Hanae Natsuki and Hosoya Yoshimasa! Yamadera Koichi as a reason to become a “voice actor”
Due to the above-mentioned activities, in “200 Popular Voice Actors Made Their Serious Choices! Voice Actor General Election 3 hours SP” (TV Asahi) broadcasted in 2017, Yamadera-san won first place.
It seems that people who adore Yamadera-san tend to become voice actors.
One of them is Hanae Natsuki, who played the main character, Tanjirou, in the anime “Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba” that caused a social phenomenon. He wanted to join the same agency and sent a voice sample to his current agency, Across Entertainment.
Also, when asked about his favorite Disney character played by Yamadera-san in an interview, he said, “All the roles of Yamadera-san are great and I can’t choose the best! I like Donald. He has that cuteness and a lot of charm that only Yamadera-san can perform. I also like Genie because I watched Aladdin repeatedly when I was a child. It’s a lifelong memory for me to sing “Me”.”
In addition, Hosoya Yoshimasa, who played roles of Olga Itsuka in “Mobile Suit Gundam: Iron-Blooded Orphans” and Hojo Shusaku in “In This Corner of the World,” also said that he was inspired to become a voice actor by watching the scene where Hokushin, played by Yamadera-san, warps in Martian Successor Nadesico: Prince of Darkness “.
■ Not just dubbing! He is also active in anime, dramas, and as an MC
This time, because of the first broadcast of the live-action version of “Aladdin” on TV, I wrote an introductory article focusing on Yamadera-san’s “dubbing”, but there are still many things that are indispensable when you talk about Yamadera-san, such as anime voicing, acting, moderators, impersonators, and many other activities.
If you read this article and want to know more about Yamadera-san, why don’t you check it out? At the same time as being surprised,”This role was also played by Yama-chan !?”, I hope you will realize the greatness of Yamadera-san.
