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Sanji and Zoro Have The Best Bromance On And Off The Set Of One Piece Live Action

There are a lot of complicated feelings when it comes to the live-action adaptation of Eiichiro Oda's One Piece produced by Netflix. However, one of the strongest consensus points I have seen about the series, even from its detractors, is the casting and chemistry between everybody on set. Whether it's in the show proper or behind-the-scenes videos, everybody involved always seems to be having the time of their lives, and it feels infectious. At Anime NYC 2026, I had the opportunity to attend a live panel starring Taz Skylar and Mackenyu Arata, the live-action actors of Sanji and Zoro, respectively. There were a lot of fun stories shared, but I love how the focus of the panel seemed to be about the strong friendship between them.

One of the funniest stories that was told at the panel was how Taz and Mackenyu met in person. It's no secret that these two needed to be in top shape to portray their characters, but Mackenyu really seems to enjoy working out. When they first started working together, the first text message that Mackenyu sent to Taz was asking if he had a pull-up bar at his place, to which he responded yes. This led to Mackenyu stopping by just to work out on the pull-up bar. Taz said he was working on something else at the time but felt so awkward having this man work out at his place that he actually got up to go for a run…while leaving Mackenyu at his place. It was hilarious, but I like the fact that these two weren't afraid to communicate just how unorthodox their friendship is.

Both gave the impression that they were hard workers who respected how much the other person accomplishes. However, they were also willing to poke fun at the weird idiosyncrasies that the other has. How to work out and stay in shape was definitely a major point of conversation. Mackenyu seemed to try to play things off and be a lot more laid-back, but he did not hesitate to praise just how hard Taz worked, considering that he not only needed to work out physically, but also develop some cooking skills that were indicative of Sanji. Mackenyu said that he didn't need to learn a lot of sword skills to be like Zoro on screen, but Taz had to learn a lot. Considering Taz's surfing and skating background, learning how to fight was something he was not used to. It was hard hearing about how there were times when he would push his body beyond its limits to the point where it felt like he was destroying himself. There was a real sense that they had seen the other through rough times and were there to offer support.

On the flip side, it was fun hearing how Taz kept trying to gas up Mackenyu about how dedicated he was to the material, as he was a major One Piece fan before he was even cast. In fact, it seemed like a lot of the cast did turn to him occasionally whenever they didn't understand something. Maybe Mackenyu was getting too into character at times, as the two were asked who is most likely to sleep on set; both of them agreed that it would be Mackenyu, as he would immediately doze off the minute that there was a break.

The Sanji and Zoro dynamic is interesting in One Piece, as the two are always at each other's throats, bickering or belittling the other at every turn. However, what brings them together is a strong devotion and loyalty to Luffy. These two actors say that they can have those fights or get into that mindset because they are such good friends. They might be different, but they're still brought together by a very strong attachment and loyalty to their captain, or in this case, to the series. However, while the two may poke fun at each other, they were not nearly as hostile towards each other on the set or in real life. Taz definitely did most of the talking during the panel, similar to how Sanji does in the series proper. When they were asked if they were at all similar to their characters or if their costar was most similar to their characters, Taz almost seemed embarrassed that he gave a generic answer about how they're half like their characters and half not. But the best punchline was from Mackenyu as he just said “same.”

Another funny exchange during the panel was being asked what arc Mackenyu would like to see the series adapt. Mackenyu tried to answer realistically, knowing that there was no way that they would be able to cover the entire franchise because aging is a thing and they don't want to be working on this when they're old. Special mention to the two of them acting out their moves like old men on stage. Probably my favorite moment was when someone in the crowd yelled the Wano arc, and Mackenyu yelled back, “Wano!? Imma be 90!” Either these two are phenomenal actors able to sell that chemistry on stage, or there was a lot of genuineness on display here that I would argue doesn't get shown off as much anymore when it comes to such ambitious productions.