One Piece season 2 adds The Conners star in major role
One Piece has found its Dr Kureha in Katey Sagal, who is officially replacing Jamie Lee Curtis.
The Conners and Sons of Anarchy star will join the Netflix live-action show on its second season in the role of the eccentric doctor who teams up with the Straw Hat Pirates. Meanwhile, The Morning Show's Mark Harelik has also been announced to star as Dr Hiriluk.
Sagal is taking over the role of Dr Kureha after Curtis first threw her hat in the ring for the part in September 2023.
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Despite her One Piece fan status and co-showrunner Matt Owens explaining he was writing the character with Curtis in mind, the busy Halloween star couldn't make it work.
Curtis ultimately turned the gig down due to scheduling conflicts, with Becky Clements, the president of Tomorrow Studios (which co-produces One Piece for Netflix), commenting on the casting news.
"[Curtis] loves the show," Clements told Deadline, "[but] she has too many films and TV shows that she's going into production on, so our production dates aren't going to work."
"She definitely wanted to do it, but she's got deals in first position, and it just became complicated."
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Clements reassured fans, saying production "found an amazing person" to take on the role of Dr Kureha. The actor in question was finally revealed to be Sagal, whose recent acting credits include the series Dead to Me and Tell Me Lies as well as TV legal drama Rebel, inspired by the life of Erin Brockovich.
As for Curtis, her prior commitments that prevented her from joining One Piece include the hotly anticipated sequel to Freaky Friday. Titled Freakier Friday, the film also features Curtis's original co-star Lindsay Lohan, who is reprising her role from the 2003 movie.
One Piece season one is available to watch on Netflix. A release date for season 2 is to be announced.
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