Mike McFarland, the acclaimed voice actor best known for portraying Master Roshi and Yajirobe in Dragon Ball and Dragon Ball Z, as well as Buggy the Clown in One Piece, has died at the age of 56.
McFarland died Wednesday, Sept. 10, following a battle with brain cancer.
Beyond voice acting, McFarland was also a writer, director and line producer who played a major role in the development of Texas-based anime production. He began his career with Funimation and later continued his work with Crunchyroll following the companies’ merger.
“Mike brought so much to all of us who knew him, and to all of the anime fans that knew his work. He was an incredible talent, a good friend to so many of us, and will be sorely, sorely missed,” Crunchyroll said in a statement to Deadline.
According to Anime News Network, McFarland was diagnosed with glioblastoma, an aggressive form of brain cancer, in 2025.
McFarland’s extensive voice-acting résumé included Jean Kirstein in Attack on Titan, Jean Havoc in Fullmetal Alchemist and Teppei Sugo in Psycho-Pass. However, one of his most recognizable roles was Buggy the Clown in One Piece, a character he voiced from 2007 until his death.
His other credits included Makoto Hyuga in the Evangelion film series, Sky Master in Heaven’s Lost Property, Goemon Ishikawa in Lupin III: The Woman Called Fujiko Mine and other Lupin III films, and George in Case Closed.
Some of McFarland’s more recent roles included Hiroshi Odokawa in Odd Taxi, Big Bad Wolf in Date A Live IV and E.G. Mine in Trigun Stampede.
With a career spanning decades, McFarland left a lasting mark on the English-language anime industry and on generations of fans who grew up hearing his distinctive performances.
