One Piece Confirms Rumors About Major Star In Season 2
Popular Netflix live-action series, One Piece, didn’t have much of a publicity tour premiering alongside industry strikes. But with the writer’s strike over, showrunner Matt Owens sat down with Deadline to discuss the show and where it might go with Season 2 already confirmed, including the potential casting of Hollywood legend Jamie Lee Curtis as Doctor Kureha.
In a September 22 Instagram post, following a surge of fans suggesting the casting, Jamie Lee Curtis expressed interest in lobbying to be cast in Netflix’s One Piece as Doctor Kureha. Owens replied in a comment that no lobbying would be necessary and explained that was why he had sent her a figure. In the interview with Deadline, Owens explained the figure comment.
“After she won her Oscar, the writers room sent her a figure of Doctor Kureha with a nice note that said, ‘Congratulations on your statue, here’s another one to put next to it. Hope to speak to you soon.'”
Owen Wilson, One Piece showrunner
In One Piece, the character Jamie Lee Curtis might soon portray, Doctor Kureha, is the head of the Issi-100 and is the adoptive mother of the character Tony Tony Chopper, a human-deer hybrid who is likely not going to be entirely CGI but instead prosthetics though this may change. Doctor Kureha is an older woman with long gray hair, a bright wardrobe, and a medical genius with a less-than-stellar bedside manner.
While fitting nearly all the physical attributes of the character, the question remains if Jamie Lee Curtis will wear a wig with extensions or if the character of Doctor Kureha will debut with a much shorter hairstyle.
One Piece, based on the manga of the same name by Eiichiro Oda and subsequent anime series, follows the story of Monkey D. Luffy and the Straw Hat Pirates as they search for the treasure known as One Piece. Obtaining the treasure will allow Luffy to become the next pirate king. Neither the manga nor the anime series are finished.
After Jamie Lee Curtis expressed interest in playing Doctor Kureha in One Piece, the Netflix series’ showunner confirmed they hope to officialy cast Curtis soon.
The Straw Hat Pirates, or Straw Hat Crew, sail under a stylized version of the Jolly Roger and are named after the straw hat Luffy always wears. Luffy’s body was accidentally rubberized after consuming the devil fruit, Goma Goma no Mi.
Owens, an enthusiastic fan of the source material, isn’t keeping strictly to the source but is keeping true to it, allowing for information that comes to light later in One Piece to unfold in the time it occurred in the manga and anime. Fans of the manga should be comforted by Oda’s involvement in the Netflix live-action series that Jamie Lee Curtis may soon join.
“We’re trying to manifest it. Yes, as of right now, SAG is still striking so there have not been real conversations. But as soon as there can be, I’m ready. I will take her out to dinner, we’ll talk about it. We’ll do all of it because at this point we’re writing for her — we really, really want her to come and play with us in Season 2.”
Owen Wilson on Jamie Lee Curits joining One Piece
With the writer’s strike over, work on writing season 2 has begun, though with SAG-AFTRA still striking, there is no word on when production will begin or when the series might announce an official casting for Jamie Lee Curtis. As One Piece is filmed in South Africa, weather is a concern, and the hope is to have production underway early next year.
Given the many volumes of One Piece’s manga that have been published, over 1000 chapters, and 106 volumes, there is more than enough material to work with for several seasons, and Owens assures fans that there are long-term plans for the live-action show.
Owens told Deadline, “I do have ideas of what future seasons can be, what will be included in them, how we can, on a macro level, structure some things just because of the wealth of material that we have. I will make this show until Netflix says no more.”
