Los Angeles Comic Con 2025 (LACC) took place last month from Friday, September 26, to Sunday, September 28, 2025, at the Los Angeles Convention Center. The 14th annual convention delivered a star-studded lineup and an expanded focus on diverse fandoms, including comics, gaming, anime, and pop culture.
An interview with veteran voice actor Luci Christian provided a candid look at the evolving world of anime and her two-decade-long connection to the iconic character, Nami, from One Piece. Christian spoke with us about the genre’s mainstream acceptance and the profound global impact of her work.
Luci Christian Talks “One Piece” and Anime’s Global Appeal
Christian was thrilled by the overwhelming presence of anime fandom at the convention, noting that the boundary between comic and anime conventions is dissolving.
“It’s great and it’s a long time coming,” Christian stated, recalling a weird transition period years ago. Anime actors were often split into a separate green room from other celebrities. Now, the scene is dramatically different. She recounted attending the One Piece Red film premiere at New York Comic Con, where she observed that 90% of the floor was anime.
Christian attributes this change to anime having permeated the collective consciousness to the point where it’s simply “fandom” of whatever people like. She also shared her own niche fandom, expressing a love for British shows like Doctor Who.
A 20-Year Commitment and a Gift
Christian voices iconic characters, such as Nami in One Piece, Ochako in My Hero Academia, and Medusa in Soul Eater. She feels “super fortunate” to be part of such popular stories. She also noted that fans often tell her, “I grew up with you. You voiced my childhood.” This is a sentiment she considers a huge honor.
Her relationship with Nami, a character she has voiced for over 20 years, is especially unique.
When hired, the cast was told it would be a commitment. However, none of them truly understood the scale of the commitment to a series that has run for this long. Christian calls the experience a gift due to the rarity of playing a character for such an extended period.
She credits One Piece creator Oda for taking the necessary time to build and flesh all of this out, allowing actors and fans to know the characters on a profound level not often seen in shorter shows.
Christian revealed that the English dub initially started with the Skypia Arc and then went back to record the first 140 episodes. She noted that this caused some initial confusion, explaining that she didn’t know Nami’s backstory at first. Going back and recording the full story made all of Nami’s later actions and anger make a lot more sense.
Luci Christian understands that “One Piece” is a Global Phenomenon
Christian goes on to describe the global legacy of One Piece as bonkers, particularly the fact that the story, which has “permeated culture,” is used worldwide as a symbol of people wanting freedom from oppression.
“Oda is a genius,” she concluded, expressing her immense honor to be a tiny little part of the story.
When asked who she would like to play in the live-action adaptation, Christian shared a humble, fun idea for an Easter egg cameo, stating, “I would love to be just like an extra on the set… and I get to be like, just say like, bunch of idiots, or they’re so noisy.” She explained she’d love to say something cantankerous and annoying, like Nami would, calling it the “funniest Easter egg.”
One Piece is currently streaming on Crunchyroll, with over 1,000 episodes available to watch. The Netflix live-action series is set to air its second season on March 10, 2026.
