Netflix’s One Piece Live Action Sparks Controversy with Casting Choices for Alabasta Arc

Despite the announcement of its second season’s cast, Netflix’s adaptation of One Piece has already sparked controversy, particularly with the casting of Sendhil Ramamurthy as Nefertari Cobra, the King of Alabasta, which has received backlash.

The fans of the show have been voicing their dissatisfaction with the casting of Indian-American actor Ramamurthy, as he differs greatly from the depiction of the character in the original manga as an elderly Middle Eastern or Arab man.

Additionally, as Netflix faces criticism and challenges surrounding representation and authenticity in their live-action adaptations of the exciting anime series, the focus now turns to unveiling the cast for other important roles such as Nefertari Vivi.

Controversy over the Actor Playing Nefertari Cobra in Second Season of the One Piece Live-Action Series

On August 22, 2024, Netflix revealed the line-up for the second season of One Piece Live-Action, which featured Sendhil Ramamurthy, an Indian-American actor, as Nefertari Cobra, the ruler of Alabasta. While the initial casting announcement received positive reactions from fans, it soon sparked controversy within the show’s dedicated fan community.

Nefertari Cobra as shown in the anime series (Image via Toei Animation)

The crux of the problem lies in the contrast between Ramamurthy’s portrayal of the character and Eiichiro Oda’s original manga. In the source material, Nefertari Cobra is depicted as an older, middle-aged man with distinct Arabian features. Some fans argue that, although Ramamurthy is a skilled actor, he is too youthful and does not possess the same ethnic traits as Cobra.

How Fans of One Piece Reacted to Inaccurate Casting

The One Piece fan community on social media platforms expressed disappointment with Sendhil Ramamurthy’s announcement as Nefertari Cobra.

“Guess no Arab actors available,”a fan said

“I thought Cobra was Egyptian, he’s Indian,”another fan said

“I guess Indians will be the main actors of Arabasta. That’s fine, I’m sure they’re great, but I bet a lot of Arabs wished for their representation. (I say Arabasta not Alabasta, because in Japanese: R & L are the same letter, so both are correct. But the Manga calls it Arabasta),”according to a fan

In addition, many concerns have been raised, stating that the casting decision missed an opportunity to accurately portray the character and cultural intricacies of the Alabasta arc.

“Should have been a middle eastern charecter,”said a fan

“I’m sorry but alabasta is based on Arabic nomadic culture, he’s a good actor but he’s an American/Indian actor, why not cast an Arabic actor or an American/ Arabic like come on it’s in the name of the country alabasta/arabasta,”according to a fan

“It is kind of dissapointing that the entire arc can be so heavily influenced by Egyptian culture, the the entire alabasta cast is just Indians. They’re all so clearly Egyptian but..”another fan said

As the live-action adaptation is still in production, it is uncertain how Netflix will respond to the backlash from fans regarding the casting of Nefertari Cobra. The streaming giant has faced similar criticism in the past for miscasting in other adaptations, and the One Piece fan community has demonstrated their willingness to vocalize their concerns and advocate for necessary changes in order to maintain the integrity of the source material.

Final Thoughts

A snapshot from the anime series (Image via Toei Animation)

The debate surrounding the selection of Nefertari Cobra for the One Piece Live-Action series highlights the importance of accurately depicting beloved source material. It remains to be seen if Netflix will acknowledge these criticisms and make necessary changes to the characters in order to provide a more faithful and reflective depiction of the One Piece universe.

Without a strong creative direction and acknowledgement of the original source material, the live-action adaptation may struggle to find success and meet the high expectations of devoted One Piece fans.

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