One Piece producer Becky Clements teases which potential new characters could debut in season 2. The live-action adaptation of Oda Eichirou’s beloved long-running manga follows the journey of Inaki Godoy’s Monkey D. Luffy, an ambitious young boy who sets off across the ocean to discover a long-lost treasure. After debuting on Netflix on August 31, One Piece season 1 has since been a high-rating hit for the streaming service.
With a potential One Piece season 2 on the horizon, producers Clements and Marty Adelstein opened up to Deadline about the process of bringing the manga into live-action and its future. After discussing the elements, characters, and stories for the live-action version with Netflix, Oda, and manga publisher Shuiesha, Clements stated they prioritized the aspects that they felt mattered most for what makes One Piece unique to screen, including the final episode’s surprise cameo to tease that they knew where the story would be heading. Check out Clements’ full response below:
Everything we do is in concert with Netflix, [manga publisher] Shueisha and Oda-san, they are a part of that conversation. We’ve definitely had more thorough conversations about what we would do with Season 2 should we have the opportunity, and then less extensive conversations about where we would go for season three to six. The one thing I would say, we’re all unified in the parts of the manga that you just absolutely cannot eliminate, and that’s our guiding principle, the stories that we know and the characters that we know are important to the fans. So that really is the start in breaking future seasons. It will require a lot of conversations, but we feel lucky to have have the roadmap.
I actually think we do have death but we just don’t linger on it. One of the parts of One Piece that is so original are the villains. it really is the area where, between the Gum Gum fruit and the villains, they are so much fun, we’d like them to come back when they can.
But the end of the season leads to the next natural chapter for the manga, that’s what that indicates. That was the idea, that we wanted to give fans a little stepping stone, something they recognize that indicated where we might be heading. That was very intentional, and something that we added after filming because we wanted to indicate that we have a plan creatively, that we thought would please the fans.
Where Could The Straw Hat Pirates Head Next In One Piece Season 2?
In the One Piece season 1 finale, “Worst in the West,” many threads were established for potential future storylines. While Luffy and friends were quick to celebrate making their names as pirates, the final montage also caught up with a vengeful Buggy (Jeff Ward) and Alvida (Ilia Isorelys Paulino), who were eager to get their own back on the young pirate king wannabe, setting up their returns. Furthermore, Garp (Vincent Reagan) officially took Koby (Morgan Davies) and Helmeppo (Aidan Scott) under his wing to teach them how to be marines, building their own trajectory from being cadets to highly-trained operatives.
One Piece season 1 concluded with the reveal of a mysterious, heavy-smoking villain setting his sights on Luffy. This figure is Smoker, the marine vice-admiral who was introduced and served as the antagonist of the Loguetown arc, in which the Straw Hat crew faced several foes when picking up supplies ahead of the voyage to the Grand Line. While “Worst in the West” adapted moments from both the beginning and end of the arc, Netflix’s One Piece changed event orders to better fit the show’s structure. Therefore, Loguetown may still be the next destination, especially with Smoker, Buggy, and Alvida playing key parts in that arc.
With One Piece season 2’s scripts already written and stories teased throughout season 1, Clements and the crew behind the show have a clear plan. While season 1’s changes and discussion about further changes may leave some wary, Oda and Shuiesha’s involvement could ease those concerns. As such, should Netflix give One Piece season 2 the go-ahead, audiences can be relieved that the crew behind the show have firmly laid the groundwork for future adventures.
