While the dragons in Miss Kobayashi's Dragon Maid may have made a short trip to New York City within the series, voice actors Yuki Kuwahara (Tohru) and Maria Naganawa (Kanna) made their way to the Big Apple for their own adventure when they visited Anime NYC in August! During their trip, Crunchyroll News was able to speak with the two about the international release of Miss Kobayashi's Dragon Maid: A lonely dragon wants to be loved, their treasured moments from the series and movie and what to expect during the anime's theatrical debut! Is there anything in New York City you are going to do that you’re looking forward to? Yuki Kuwahara : I've seen the streets of New York City in movies and TV shows and such, and I've always admired them. But I never had a chance to visit. So I don't have anywhere in particular that I want to go, but I'd love to see and take in streetscapes and buildings of NYC. Maria Naganawa : I'd say… large portions of food. [laughs] My impression of food and beverages in NYC in general is "huge." So I'm hoping to enjoy that while I'm here. Anything in particular? Naganawa : Big steaks and big hamburgers. I just want to sink my teeth into them. Funny enough, Kanna (and Tohru in the background) has been to New York before (in Dragon Maid S , Episode 10)! Are you hoping to check out any places featured in the episode while you are both here? Naganawa : There is a scene where Kanna eats a hot dog, so I'm determined to get a hot dog. Kuwahara : Tohru secretly watches over Kanna in that episode, and you can see a tiny Tohru eating soft serve in the background. So I'd love to try a big soft serve like that. As the Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid movie was released four years after the end of the second season, was there any practice or techniques you had to do to prepare to get back into your roles? Kuwahara: It was four years after the TV series. But happily, we had many opportunities to voice Tohru and Kanna for video games and such during that time. So it didn't feel like it had been a long time, but I remember we felt really happy that we could get together and record together again. So I don't think we forgot anything. Naganawa : No! Kuwahara: It felt like Tohru and Kanna were always by our side. So it was like we just picked up where we left off at the end of Season 2, and it felt very natural. Naganawa : To get myself prepared for the movie, I watched Season 1 and 2 and followed some reactions on X (formerly Twitter). Looking back at my performance as Kanna in Season 1 for the first time in a long time, there were many places where I went, "Gosh, I would have played it like this if I could do it again right now!" And of course, while I was recording Season 2, I put out the best Kanna I could at that point. But I am striving every day so I can grow as a voice actor, and I hope I do. So, to do this movie after voicing Kanna for two seasons, and especially the story of Kanna being the main feature of this movie…I know Kanna is loved by all, but I wanted to upgrade Kanna's loveliness and her sweetness for this movie so that she'd be loved even more. Is there much difference in how you approach your voice acting style for a series versus a movie? Kuwahara : This movie focuses on Kanna's story. In the TV series, the narrative is usually about the heartwarming and fun daily lives of dragons. But the movie is centered around Kanna and her father, so for Tohru, it is about a fight to protect Kanna and Miss Kobayashi. In the TV series, Tohru is all about "I love you, Miss Kobayashi!" But in this movie, Tohru fights to protect those she loves. So her facial expressions are more serious, and there are a lot of cool scenes of Tohru. You can expect a lot of battle scenes with Tohru in this movie, both in her full dragon form and her usual form. In that sense, you can see Tohru's growth from Season 1 and 2 now that she has more people she wants to protect. You'll see that in her face, and I remember reading the manga and the script and thinking, "I've got to bring my A-game to portray this." Naganawa : The TV series shows Kanna's heartwarming, adorable side. And she isn't the type of character to show her emotions, and her facial expression doesn't change a lot. But in this movie, you see her get angry, for example. She becomes more expressive about how she feels, with what she says, and also with her facial expressions. You'll see a lot of that in this movie, and how Kanna is like when she's angry or sad, which we didn't get to see a lot of in the TV series. In the TV series, I never really had to raise my voice or speak loudly to play Kanna. But in this movie, you'll see a lot of emotions out of her. She speaks in a way she's never done before, at the volume she's never used before, but I have to maintain Kanna's voice…I worked really hard on that. Miss Kobayashi's Dragon Maid is a series about the daily lives of Kobayashi-san and the dragons, so do you also have a favorite scene or episode in particular? Kuwahara : There was an episode where Tohru and Miss Kobayashi have a bento-making competition. Being in love with Miss Kobayashi, Tohru has always been like, "I'll do anything for you!" But this was the first time Tohru competed against Miss Kobayashi. And to me, it was a sign that Tohru was opening up to her, so playing that part made me happy. The fact that Tohru felt comfortable showing that side of her affected how I played Tohru around Miss Kobayashi after that. Naganawa : In Season 1, there's an episode about Kanna's sports festival. Kanna has been relying on Kobayashi up to that point, of course, but that episode was when it became very clear to me that Kanna was loved by both Tohru and Kobayashi. She'd make a lunch box, like a mother would do. And Kobayashi defeated Hades. [laughs] It wasn't just the Kobayashis; the Saikawas were there, and Lucoa came to cheer for Shouta too. It showcased the warm relationships each family had, as you come to expect from this series. So that episode is my personal favorite. Is there any scene in the movie you particularly enjoyed performing, or even just watching? Kuwahara : Among the scenes I performed, I remember the battle scenes more vividly than the others. Tohru fights in the TV series as well, but this time around, she battles against someone unexpected. So I performed it so the scene would be powerful. Plus, the picture was incredible, so I wanted to keep up with it. You'll feel the power in the battle scenes in theaters, too, so I hope you pay attention to that. With the scenes I wasn't in, you just can't miss Kanna's scene where she shows so many emotions…I can't reveal too much, but there's a scene that makes me cry every time I watch. I hear her voice in that scene, and it makes me cry without fail. But it's not a sad scene, and I'm sure it will leave a big impression on you as well. So please look forward to it. Naganawa : The scene I enjoyed performing is, like I said earlier, I didn't have a lot of opportunities to be loud with Kanna. But with this movie…Oh, I don't want to spoil it, but there's a scene where Kanna gets mad and raises her voice. So being angry in Kanna's voice, and saying not-so-nice things I never expected her to say, was great. So I hope you get a surprise that "Wow, Kanna knows words like that?" As for my personal favorite scene, there's a scene that's super emotional for the fans who watched the TV series…But I don't want to spoil anything! But other dragons and characters you only saw a little bit in the TV series will… how should I put it? You'll see them play a big part in the story. Seeing that made me emotional, so I hope you look forward to it. Is there anything else you would like to say to international fans of Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid who will see the movie in the future? Kuwahara : First of all, I'm so happy that the Dragon Maid movie will be released overseas. It was received really well by the Japanese fans, and many said they cried a lot, or that they went to see it multiple times because they loved it so much. I went to see it at the movie theater five times myself. But every time there was a new discovery, it's a great movie. And after you watch it, your heart will feel warm and you'll want to be nice to other people. As we discussed in this interview, Kanna will show many sides of hers in this movie, which always makes me cry. But truly, this movie will stay in your heart for the rest of your life. So I hope you enjoy the movie and go see it many times. Naganawa : She said everything… But I'm really grateful that this movie will be released overseas so that international fans can enjoy it. This movie is about the bond between a parent and a child. The key visual has already been released, right? So you see that it's the bond between Kanna's father and Kanna, and what happened to them in the past. But aside from the parent-child bond, there are many other bonds and relationships you see in this movie based on love and compassion. It's packed with them. So after I watch this movie, I always want to go see my parents and tell the people who are always around me how grateful I am to them. It really is a beautiful film, so I hope watch it and feel your heart warmed up.
