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As Studio Bones‘s My Hero Academia enters its highly anticipated seventh and final season, set to premiere in October 2025, emotions are running high for fans worldwide—and even more so for the voices behind the beloved characters. At the heart of the story is Izuku Midoriya, a once-Quirkless boy inherits the Quirk of his idol, One For All, rising to symbolize hope for a new generation of heroes. Throughout the series and films, Seiyu Awards Award-winning Japanese voice actor, Daiki Yamashita (also known for JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Golden Wind and Pokémon Journeys), has brought Deku’s journey to life, with his passionate performance capturing the character’s vulnerability, growth, and determination.
With the series reaching its emotional climax, The Beat had the opportunity to interview Deku’s voice actor, Yamashita, at Anime Expo 2025 about My Hero Academia’s seventh and final season, the emotional toll of getting into character for “Dark Deku,” and the blessing he received from the MHA manga creator, Kōhei Horikoshi, to play the role however he wants to.
OLLIE KAPLAN: I’m sure you’ve been asked this a million times, but how did you prepare to voice such a beloved character, such as Deku, and how have you kept Deku’s energy and optimism fresh throughout all the seasons?
DAIKI YAMASHITA: Deku doesn’t forget his respect for his heroes ever, so whenever I play him, I pretty much think about all the things that I love and respect, and that helps a lot. What makes Deku, Deku is that he doesn’t forget the respect for his heroes.
KAPLAN: Can I follow up to ask for clarification on some of the things you love and think about?
YAMASHITA: I’m doing this job because I love acting. When I act as different characters, I get to go all over the world as those characters; that’s one of the things I love. Heroes are Deku’s admiration and the thing that he loves; likewise, the characters that I play are my admiration and what I love.
KAPLAN: Since you just mentioned going all over the world and meeting the fans, do you have a most memorable fan interaction?
YAMASHITA: One of the strongest or most memorable things about My Hero Academia is that what my fans shout is the same worldwide. The fact that Plus Ultra is popular universally, not just in Japan, is something amazing, and I love that.
KAPLAN: Are you excited about any upcoming Deku moments or story arcs?
YAMASHITA: Now we’re in the final season, and it’s just battle after battle after battle. I feel I have to give my all, and this is precisely the moment to give everything I’ve accumulated over the years to this part. So, Horikoshi-sensei was kind enough to tell me that Deku becomes Deku when I play him, so he gave me his blessing to play him however I want to. So, well, I have given it my all the whole series, I definitely did for this season. And that’s been very encouraging for me as well.
KAPLAN: Since Horikoshi-sensei gave you permission, have you improvised or added your touches to the pre-written lines? Do you have any particularly memorable moments when doing improv?
YAMASHITA: There’s a lot. I constantly add yelling and screaming, although they’re not in the actual script. I add them because that’s how my heart moves, and I leave the rest to the director and sound director. It’s up to them whether or not to use it.
KAPLAN: How do you keep all the screaming fresh?
YAMASHITA: Playing Deku has given me the most powerful throat. It’s become the throat of a hero.
KAPLAN: If you had a Quirk, what kind of Quirk would you like to have?
YAMASHITA: I’m very greedy, so I want all of them. But then it might just end up being like, all for one.
KAPLAN: How about the top three?
YAMASHITA: Since I was little, I was a Shonen Jump kid. I’ve always admired flying, so I’d float. When I was little, I watched Dragon Ball, and Goku would fly around the world. Goku appeared in my dream, saying, “I’ll teach you how to fly,” so he taught me how to fly in my dream. So I admire flying. Float is probably my top choice because I have such an intense admiration for flying.
KAPLAN: Have you ever been skydiving, if you want to fly?
YAMASHITA: Skydiving? You’ll fall if you try to fly. What I mean is that I want to fly freely through the air; I don’t want to fall. I wouldn’t have to take the train to work if I could fly. It wouldn’t incur any transportation costs.
KAPLAN: We talked about the emotional growth of the character a lot. Were there any moments in the entire series that were particularly challenging or rewarding?
YAMASHITA: The most painful part was in season 6, with Dark Deku, dealing with that.
KAPLAN: Your shadow self, Dark Deku.
YAMASHITA: In this scene, I had overcome so many things in life with my friends, but now I had to deal with everything on my own, so I also felt that weight myself while playing that part. That was the heaviest burden on my mind. When I was doing that part, I lost 5 kilograms. Playing Deku at that point was excruciating because he was so consumed by hatred and sadness that he couldn’t hear his friends. I realized how alone it is to fight by yourself. However, Deku realizes how powerful fighting with everyone is in the last season because of that loneliness. Now, he’s able to be more positive about it, too
KAPLAN: You said you lost 10 pounds, so I must follow up. When you get into that emotional state, what is involved in your acting process?
YAMASHITA: I wasn’t hungry during that time. I never felt like eating. When I was thinking about Deku, I realized there were more things to consider than eating. Should I be eating something so delicious right now?
KAPLAN: That sounds really method.
YAMASHITA: I got depressed. I wanted to feel the same thing. I guess it just happened; a lot of things happen naturally. I felt like I was becoming monochrome. No matter what I did, the curse of All for One would come flashing back to me. I just wasn’t in a regular state of mind at the time.
KAPLAN: That sounds hard. Can we get a final message to fans?
YAMASHITA: All we have left is the final season now. Everyone watching and supporting from the beginning should follow through to the end. And I feel that special bond with them.
Watch the trailer for My Hero Academia‘s final season below:
SDCC COVERAGE SPONSORED BY MAD CAVE
English (US)