All the One Piece live action season 2 news we’ve heard so far

Luffy and his Straw Hat crew are setting sail for the Grand Line in the first season of Netflix’s live-action adaptation of One Piece. Season 1 let Luffy gather some of the best pirates the East Blue has to offer — including Roronoa Zoro, Nami, and Sanji — but that is just the beginning of a very long, long journey (as any One Piece fan knows). Thankfully, Netflix has officially announced One Piece season 2 so we know that another adventure with the Straw Hat crew is on the way (not to mention a new anime starting from the beginning, with the help of Wit Studio!). But, like Luffy’s adventure to find the One Piece, the wait for season 2 is going to take a little while. The series’ creator Eiichiro Oda has claimed at least some credit, though only insofar as he wants this show to be great. “Whether it’s the script or the cast, I continue to insist on this or that, which makes Matt the showrunner go ‘AAARRGH!’ and Netflix go ‘NOOOO!’ and Tomorrow Studios go ‘WHAAAAT’ as they all pull their hairs out,” Oda wrote in a note in mid-August. “Just as with last season, they’ve gone out of their way to promise that they won’t put the show out until I’m satisfied.” But there’s also just a lot more happening on the Grand Line in season 2, per Oda’s note, so it makes sense that it’s taking a little longer to get everything just right. Here’s everything we know about One Piece and its upcoming season: Is One Piece season 2 coming? Yes, it’s officially happening. Netflix announced the second season in a video with Oda where he thanked fans, announced the new season, and even teased Chopper. The second season is welcome news for fans, but also not a tremendous surprise. The show’s seemed to be a big hit for Netflix, but setting that aside (since we don’t technically know the adaptation’s popularity yet), it already cost the streaming service a ton of money. Since the show’s big sets have already been built, it’s likely Netflix is already in this for two seasons at least. Another pretty good indication was that the show’s first season ended with a tease for a character that should show up soon, setting up the next chapter of the plot. According to producer Marty Adelstein in an interview with Variety, all of the scripts for season 2 are already finished. While writing all the scripts for a season that hasn’t even been greenlit yet may sound strange, it isn’t actually all that unusual, especially at Netflix, which tends to renew its shows a little later after their release — possibly to help build up fan fervor. When will One Piece season 2 release on Netflix? With no official word on season 2, predicting when it might get released isn’t easy. However, Adelstein shedded light on this as well. The producer hinted in 2023 that the show could be ready to release as quickly as 12 to 18 months after the SAG strike ends. And with all the scripts done, the WGA’s strike at the time wasn’t going to be a barrier to the show going back into production. With that timeline in mind (and both strikes well over) it seems like we can at least hope to see the return of Luffy and the Straw Hat crew in 2025. [Image: https://platform.polygon.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/chorus/uploads/chorus_asset/file/24878317/803_2c_09051005_full_rangeR.jpg?quality=90&strip=all] Will the cast be back for season 2? One Piece’s delightful cast is back for the next season, along with plenty of additions. First up, two doctors with a bit of history: Mark Harelik as Dr. Hiriluk, and Katey Sagal (who you might know as Leela on Futurama) will be playing Dr. Kureha. Both characters will be important to Chopper, whose casting hasn’t been announced… yet. Also recently announced was Never Have I Ever’s Sendhil Ramamurthy as Nefertari Cobra, a king and major character during the Arabasta arc. Also hailing from the Arabasta Kingdom, is Bridgerton season 2’s Charithra Chandran, who will be joining the cast as Miss Wednesday. And Netflix has already begun rounding out the new cast beyond those three characters: [Media: https://twitter.com/onepiecenetflix/status/1825884279475437922] Who was that at the end of One Piece season 1? [Ed. note: This section contains very light spoilers for the next few chapters of One Piece after season 1 of the live-action show ends.] One Piece’s season 1 ending teases the addition of a new antagonist for the Straw Hat crew: Smoker. As seen above, he’ll be played by Callum Kerr. In the manga, Smoker is a member of the Marines, and an important figure in the Loguetown arc, but that’s all we’ll say here so we don’t spoil the fun next season. What will One Piece season 2 be about? Well we know for sure Smoker is on the way, considering the first season’s final scene. But thanks to an update from Oda, we know a bit more about everything One Piece season 2 will cover: namely, the arcs from Loguetown (as referenced above), Reverse Mountain (With Oda specifying: Twin Cape), Whiskey Peak, Little Garden, and Drum Island. That’s about 58 chapters between the start of Loguetown and the end of Drum Island, which is far less than the 100 or so covered in season 1. But these are also very full chapters, with fewer arcs that easily lift out. [Media: https://twitter.com/onepiecenetflix/status/1825880464940273983] Should I read the manga or watch the anime while I wait for One Piece season 2? You absolutely should. Depending on your preference between anime and manga, you could really do either, but all things considered, the manga is the best version of One Piece. Either way, you’ll have more than a thousand chapters (or episodes) of content to pass the time, with the added benefit of reading or watching one of the most entertaining, earnest, and impressive stories ever. If you need a little added incentive, author Eiichiro Oda is gearing up for the finale of the long-running manga at the moment. Of course, because of how long One Piece sagas can be, that could still mean he’s a few years off finishing his story, but still it’s an exciting time to be a One Piece fan.