Ahead of their highly anticipated Anime Expo panel this afternoon, the creative minds behind Disney’s upcoming anime, Dragon Striker, sat down with journalists to peel back the layers on their new project. Creators Sylvain Dos Santos, Charles Lefebvre, and Paul McKeown discussed the immense challenges of building their new world, their long-term visions for the series, and their deep desire to see the fandom take ownership of the story through cosplay and fanfiction. For a series centered around high-octane sports and magical abilities, the creators revealed that the true hurdle wasn’t just animating the action. It was grounding a massive ensemble cast.

At Anime Expo, The ‘Dragon Striker’ Creative Team Talks Balancing a Living, Breathing World

When asked about the technical and storytelling hurdles beyond portraying sports, Charles Lefebvre pointed out that character real estate was a primary focus.

“For me, it was to create a character, right? Because we have a lens of characters in the show and a few screen times for some,” Lefebvre explained, noting the challenge of making every individual feel unique while maintaining a driving narrative.

The team worked tirelessly to ensure the world felt historical and lived-in, even down to the details of the backgrounds and settings. Paul McKeown expanded on this delicate balancing act:

“One of the biggest things we had to find was like, how do we balance all these elements and make it coherent and have the story drive and then serve all of the things that we wanted to say… We’ve got characters with deep arcs, and we want them to grow. We want to have spectacular sports games with amazing powers. And then we want to push the story forward as well.”

Passing the Torch to the Next Generation

The journalists in attendance quickly noticed the custom Dragon Striker T-shirts worn by the creators, sparking a conversation about the visual identity of the characters and the potential for fan-made merchandise. Sylvain Dos Santos became visibly passionate when discussing the ultimate goal of their work: seeing the community embrace the show through crafts, fanfiction, and cosplay. For Dos Santos, fan creation is the ultimate validation.

“That’s the greatest music ever,” Dos Santos said. “It’s like the story and what [we] create become real. It’s getting out of the frame, out of the TV… We’ve been doing that to please people, to please ourselves, to make a story, but also to keep this feeling of wonder we had when we were kids.”

Dos Santos noted that when they were children, fan interaction was how they connected to their favorite series. Now, they view Dragon Striker as an opportunity to pass that exact torch to a new generation of fans. McKeown echoed this pride, highlighting the deliberate diversity baked into the cast: “They created a show with so many diverse characters that you can kind of connect with. So there’s someone for everyone… It’s there for you to find.”

Avoiding the “Overpowered” Shonen Trap

With the creators having previously hinted in other interviews at a desire for a five-season arc, with magical abilities powering up each season, journalists questioned how they plan to scale those powers without making the characters too Overpowered (OP) or losing their relatability.

Dos Santos compared the narrative progression to a pressure cooker. “We just have a small window of what the world is,” he said. “It’s like a volcano, and it’s finally popped up right now. It’s the opportunity to just put everything we have out consistently.” The team emphasized that they have multiple narrative axes and layers to play with during the matches to ensure that the power scaling remains consistent, entertaining, and deeply tied to character growth rather than just flashiness.

Picking Favorites

When pressed to name their favorite characters without spoiling the plot, the creators showed love to different corners of their roster. Sylvain Dos Santos was the first to answer, choosing Vital. He explained that Vital is a deeply strategic and relatable character with a tragic, yet colorful arc. For Dos Santos, Vital represents an important message for kids: even if you start at the bottom, you can eventually find your unique strengths and keep up with the rest.

Charles Lefebvre went next, pointing to Shani as his personal favorite. He noted that he brings a lot of excitement to her scenes, specifically highlighting her “lightning” energy. Paul McKeown wrapped up the discussion by admitting that choosing a favorite felt a bit like picking a favorite child, but ultimately agreed with Lefebvre on Shani. McKeown expressed a lot of pride in her development, emphasizing that an immense amount of care went into making sure she felt like a real, multi-dimensional person.

The creators have made one thing clear: Dragon Striker is built from a place of childhood nostalgia, aiming to ignite the exact same creative fire in its audience that brought its creators into the animation industry years ago.

Dragon Striker will be streaming on Disney+.

Also happening at Anime Expo 2026:

Where to find the First-Ever 3D LIVE for ‘ALIEN STAGE’ at Anime Expo 2026

‘Witch Watch’ English Cast Interview at Anime Expo 2025

Hulu Animayhem is Bringing Your Favorite Series to Anime Expo