Bang Zoom! Studios just revealed the next wave of English dub cast for Akane-banashi, the Netflix-distributed rakugo anime. The new voices fill out the Arakawa stable around Akane — the rakugo family that the show's training arc revolves around — and they kick in from episode 3.
Quick answer
The Akane-banashi English dub added six new cast members from episode 3 onward, per the May 22 announcement: Kellen Goff as Karashi Nerimaya, Anne Yatco as Hikaru Koragi, Landon McDonald as Maikeru Arakawa, Khoi Dao as Koguma Arakawa, Jonathon Ha as Kyoji Arakawa, and Darius Marquis Johnson returning as Guriko Arakawa. Bang Zoom! Studios produces under ADR director Alex Von David. Netflix premiered the first two episodes dubbed on May 17, with weekly releases following.
The new cast
- Kellen Goff — Karashi Nerimaya
- Anne Yatco — Hikaru Koragi
- Landon McDonald — Maikeru Arakawa
- Khoi Dao — Koguma Arakawa
- Jonathon Ha — Kyoji Arakawa
- Darius Marquis Johnson — Guriko Arakawa (returning from the announcement wave)
Goff is a heavyweight pull — his work on dub leads across the past five years (*Tower of God*, Berserk, Demon Slayer) puts him into the kind of category that signals a production wants the dub to actually carry weight. Anne Yatco, Khoi Dao, and Jonathon Ha all bring strong supporting credits.
Production crew
- Studio: Bang Zoom! Studios
- ADR Director + Writer: Alex Von David
- Sound Supervisor: Patrick Rodman, CAS
- Translation: Yuki Urakawa
- Existing core dub cast: Abby Trott (Akane Osaki), Xander Mobus (Shinta Arakawa)
Why this batch matters
Akane-banashi is a rakugo anime — the entire show lives or dies on vocal performance. The Japanese dub already proved that with Anna Nagase's Akane work (ANN flagged her Jugemu Jugemu episode 7 performance as a tour de force). For the English dub, the Arakawa stable casting is the structural call: this is the family of voices Akane will be performing alongside for the rest of the run. If they land, the dub becomes one of the cleaner translations of a vocal-heavy property in years.
Netflix dropping the dub onto its weekly cycle from May 17 was a deliberate scheduling choice — most Crunchyroll-adjacent dub releases run several weeks behind sub. Netflix narrowing the gap signals real confidence in the dub's commercial pull.
If you're catching up on the show, see the Akane-banashi episode 7 review and the Best Summer 2026 anime ranking for adjacent picks.
Frequently asked questions
Q: Where can I watch Akane-banashi with English dub?
A: Netflix premiered the English dub from May 17, 2026, with weekly releases tracking the Japanese broadcast.
Q: Who voices Akane in English?
A: Abby Trott voices Akane Osaki in the English dub.
Q: Who voices Shinta Arakawa in English?
A: Xander Mobus.
Q: Which studio produces the Akane-banashi English dub?
A: Bang Zoom! Studios, with ADR direction by Alex Von David.
Q: When do the new dub cast members appear?
A: The six newly announced cast members begin appearing from episode 3 onward.
Q: Is the Akane-banashi anime based on a manga?
A: Yes — the Weekly Shōnen Jump manga by Yūki Suenaga with art by Takamasa Moue.