Image: Netflix
The Straw Hat crew will return for a new season of adventures, according to One Piece creator Eiichiro Oda.
Netflix has announced that its live-action One Piece series will return for Season 2, following the widespread popularity of the show since its debut. Manga author Eiichiro Oda made the announcement himself in the most delightful way possible: via snail phone.
Watch the announcement below:
Oda, creator and overseer of the constantly-expanding One Piece franchise, reportedly worked closely with Netflix during the production of this series, so it is likely that he will continue to be involved in Season 2 moving forward. The One Piece author noted in the video that, “it’ll still take a while to get the scripts ready,” for Season 2, “so please be patient.” Oda then went on to tease at least one new face in Season 2: the reindeer doctor Tony Tony Chopper, who eventually joins the Straw Hat crew on more adventures in the manga.
One Piece’s Season 2 renewal comes as no surprise, seeing as the series has entered Netflix’s Top 10 list in 93 countries and become its #1 title globally with 37.9 million views in less than two weeks of its release. Word of mouth has clearly worked wonders for the show, with even diehard fans heaping praise on what should have been an impossible live-action adaptation.
Season 2’s release date will be a bit harder to pin down. Ongoing actors’ and writers’ strikes in Hollywood will likely stop production from ramping up anytime soon. The series' producers have announced that scripts for Season 2 are ready, and that new episodes could be released, “between a year and 18 months.” However, this will all depend on the strikes ending, and companies like Netflix paying their actors and writers a fair wage.
