Pokemon’s Ash voice actor addresses rumors that anime ended due to cast tension

Ash Ketchum voice actor Rica Matsumoto addressed rumors circulating online that the original Pokemon anime ended due to tension between herself and Pikachu voice actor Ikue Otani.

Ash Ketchum’s journey in the Pokemon anime ended in 2023, when fans of the beloved franchise were forced to say goodbye to Ash and Pikachu after 25 years on screen.

On the weekend of October 12, 2024, Game Freak, one of the co-owners of the Pokemon franchise, was breached, making it the subject of a massive leak.

In addition to thousands of employees sharing their personal information online, a transcript of the leaked data hinted at one of the main reasons Ash’s journey ultimately came to an end was due to reported “strained relations” between Rica Matsumoto (who provided the voice by Ash Ketchum)) and Ikue Otani (the voice of Pikachu).

The leaks further claimed that Game Freak was considering recasting Matsumoto if they decided to continue with Ash’s story, as the perceived tension between her and Otani was affecting the morale of the entire cast.

On October 14, 2024, Matsumoto took to X (formerly Twitter) to dispel these rumors. In her post, the Japanese voice actress wrote that “someone is making this up” and assured Pokemon fans that “nothing like that happened.”

Matsumoto added that she had been “friends with Ikue since (they) were rookies” and that “(Ikue) even came as a guest on (her) tour.”

Additionally, Ash’s voice actor denounced these rumors for being “in poor taste and childish” and finally added that “no one is happy” that people are claiming there was bad blood between herself and Otani.

Although the post revealing these leaks has now been deleted, this hasn’t stopped the wider Pokemon anime community from sharing and discussing the rumors that Ash’s departure from the anime series was due to cast drama.

Furthermore, these rumors have only been fueled further as Otani has reprized her role as Pikachu in Pokemon Horizons, while Matsumoto has yet to be called back in any capacity.

In addition to the idea that Ash’s departure from the Pokemon anime was due to cast tensions, this massive Pokemon leak also revealed Switch 2 details, source code information, Generation 10 details, and more.