When Yuriko Yamaguchi auditioned for the role of Ritsuko Akagi in Neon Genesis Evangelion, she had no idea that her life’s trajectory was about to change. Now, Yuriko is a renowned voice actress, with decades of experience in the anime industry. Not only is she the voice of Akagi, but she’s also known for voicing Nurse Joy in the Pokemon anime, Nico Robin in One Piece, and so many more characters.
We had the opportunity to speak with Yuriko at FanimeCon 2026, where we got to chat about her experience as a voice actress, her professional journey, and what the characters she’s portrayed mean to her. (Please note that the interview was done with the help of a translator, so all quotes are paraphrased from the translation.)
Getting Started
Yuriko Yamaguchi began her career as a stage actor, but actors are always in need of work, so when she had the opportunity to audition for Ritsuko Akagi in Evangelion, she took it. “I auditioned for the role like I would any other audition for my stage roles, and I got the part,” Yuriko explained. “That was my beginning as a voice actress.”
As any anime fan will tell you, Evangelion is quite the series to start with. It’s an iconic anime, that’s still discussed and debated to this day. However, no one at that time could have known it would be such a big hit, much less that it would shape her career.
“When I started on Evangelion, at that time I didn’t know it would become such a huge work, and I didn’t know any of the people at the time, including the director (Anno Hideyaki) and my coworkers. … So when the series finished and it became this big hit, I was very surprised. I originally thought I would just do one anime role, but it led to so many offers that it became my career path.”
Welcome to the Pokemon Center!
From there, anime studios began reaching out to Yuriko, asking her to voice characters in their series. Shortly after Evangelion, she took on another role that would define her career: Nurse Joy in Pokemon, who she voiced for ten years.
Nurse Joy is a unique type of role, because while she is a recurring character in the Pokemon anime, it’s actually several different but identical nurses, all named Joy, and all part of the same family.
“A lot of them are relatives, like cousins, grandmas, aunts, and other family relationships. I was told that I could act similarly for them all, which was really fun,” Yuriko explained. “On rare occasions, Satoshi [Ash in the English dub] would not do well in battles and needed help, and Joy actually got to take part in the battles. I found those moments especially fun.”
Gather Up All of the Crew
Of course, Nurse Joy isn’t the only iconic character Yuriko Yamaguchi has spent years portraying. These days, she’s best known for her role as Nico Robin in One Piece.
“When voicing Nico Robin, the two things I always in my mind that she had a very, very difficult childhood, and she had to overcome that to be with her friends, and her goal is to pursue the truth.”
Robin’s character arc in One Piece took her through an extensive journey, starting as Miss All-Sunday of Baroque Works, and eventually leading to her becoming a valued member of the Straw Hat crew. One Piece is known for its emotionally resonant moments, especially as we learn more about the characters and their backstories, and Nico Robin’s tale is filled with loss and growth alike. That means that portraying all those aspects of her character is vital to the role.
“When I started voicing Robin, I knew she would eventually become a part of the crew, so at the time I knew that I had to focus on her as this mysterious figure with a dark past… When she was still an antagonist, it wasn’t just that she was a mysterious assassin, but that she had to do that to survive. So I made sure to focus on that aspect of Nico Robin’s character.
“Even before she opens up to her friends, she’s very closed off; she’s by herself, and she’s only been able to survive until now because of that. But when I reached the part where she says ‘I want to live’ and she opens up to her friends, it was a process of going from closed to open, and that was a big part of the role. So as an actor, the character has so much meaning; it’s wonderful that I got to have this role.”
In season 2 of Netflix’s live action One Piece, Nico Robin made her debut, as portrayed by actress Lera Abova. While Yuriko has not yet had the opportunity to meet her Netflix counterpart, dubbing the live action Robin in Japanese has given her the opportunity to revisit the character. Dubbing an animated show and live action show proved to be a different experience, which has impacted the way she portrays the character
“The two actually felt very, very different,” Yuriko explained. “The animated version is a flat picture, so it gives me a lot of freedom in how I interpret the character. But for the live action version, I have to match [Lera’s] acting, so I can’t even think about the animated version while I’m doing the dubbing.”
Yuriko added: “Right at the very beginning, there’s a scene where she’s killing marines, so I made sure to keep my voice lower for the role.”
With this new adaptation, Yuriko got to return to Robin’s antagonistic roots. While the character has been both a hero and a villain, from a voice acting perspective, which type of role is more fun?
“I like the more complicated roles, so I tend to like villains,” Yuriko answered with a laugh. “I like roles where there’s something that’s complicated or even a little bit twisted or difficult. Heroes are often more straightforward.”
A Moment of Gratitude
Between Evangelion, Pokemon, and One Piece, Yuriko has been in some of the biggest anime series to grace our televisions. However, it’s not something she takes for granted, and she feels very lucky to have been able to play such memorable roles.
“I’m very grateful that I’ve been able to participate in such huge works, especially considering that they’re all works that span many, many years. We’ve reached the 30th anniversary of Evangelion, the 25th anniversary of One Piece, and even though I wasn’t with Pokemon the whole time, I voiced Joy for ten years. So I feel so fortunate that I could stay with these roles for so long and grow with these characters; I feel that I, myself, have grown from voicing them.”
We’d like to thank Yuriko Yamaguchi again for taking the time to speak with us, and to FanimeCon for the opportunity. Keep an eye on G33k-HQ for more interviews and more Fanime coverage to come!
