Witch Hat Atelier Anime Casts Ryusei Nakao and Hiiro Ishibashi
The casting of two new characters for the Second Pentagram Test Arc signals that the adaptation is advancing past its introductory episodes into the story's more ensemble-driven conflicts.
Reporting from 2 sources: Anime News Network, Anime Corner.
The staff for the television anime of Kamome Shirahama's Witch Hat Atelier manga announced two new cast members on Monday. Veteran voice actor Ryusei Nakao will voice Sasaran, a member of the Brimmed Cap group, while Hiiro Ishibashi has been cast as Euini. Sasaran appears in episode 10, which aired on June 1, and Euini will join the story in episode 11 on June 8. The two characters play significant roles in the upcoming Second Pentagram Test Arc. Nakao said he was looking forward to the series because he liked its world and became fond of playing a character shrouded in mystery. Ishibashi said he was drawn into the manga's world and felt honored to join a work loved around the world. Ayumu Watanabe is directing the anime at BUG FILMS. The series premiered on April 6 on Tokyo MX and other channels. Crunchyroll streams the anime as it airs, including an English dub. The manga launched in Kodansha's Morning Two magazine in July 2016 and has 16 compiled volumes as of April 2026. The franchise has over 7 million copies in circulation worldwide.
Nakao, known for his roles as Freeza in the Dragon Ball franchise and Mayuri Kurotsuchi in Bleach, described Sasaran as "a character shrouded in mystery." Ishibashi said he was "drawn into" the manga's world and felt inspired by the passion of lead voice actor Motomura Kiyono (Coco) and the rest of the cast during recording sessions he joined midway through production.
Director Ayumu Watanabe previously described the adaptation as "a reckless undertaking" in a recent interview. The production team includes Hiroaki Kojima as animation producer, Kairi Unabara as character designer and chief animation director, and Yuka Kitamura composing the music. Eve and suis perform the opening theme "Kaze no Anthem feat. suis from yorushika." Nakamura Hak performs three ending theme songs: "Tada Utsukushii no Noroi," "Yoru ni Ukabu," and "Hikari."
The manga won the Harvey Award for Best Manga in 2020 and again in 2025. It also won the Eisner Award for Best U.S. Edition of International Material-Asia in 2020. A spin-off manga, Witch Hat Atelier Kitchen, launched in Morning Two in November 2019.
Synthesized by Yomimono from the 2 cited sources below, including Japanese-language reporting where cited, then editorially reviewed before publishing.