The one scene One Piece creator Eiichiro Oda requested to be redone

Netflix’s live-action One Piece was met with some concern as turning a beloved anime and manga to life isn’t as easy as it seems. During the filming of One Piece, director Emma Sullivan revealed Eiichiro Oda was displeased with one scene and had it redone.

Going into One Piece, Sullivan wasn’t knowledgeable in the original source material. Once she realized how big of a fan her son was and the people she knew were, Sullivan realized she had to do right by Oda. Believe it or not, she never got to meet the famous creator.

Developing a live-action comes with its challenges. Going into the creation of the Netflix series, everything had to be approved by Oda. He admitted that the series didn’t have to have a “one-on-one” adaptation. Fans may notice the difference between the anime, manga, and the series.

Still having the final say in what was left or changed in the series, Oda did request a scene to be reshot. Director Sullivan breaks down why Oda wanted one of Zoro’s scenes to be filmed again in One Piece.

Eiichiro Oda didn’t like young Zoro’s fight scene in One Piece

Director Sullivan revealed Eiichiro Oda had them reshoot young Zoro and Kuina’s fight in Shimotsuki Village in One Piece Episode 4.

Each character in One Piece gets a backstory to who they were before the current events of the series. Roronoa Zoro (Mackenyu) is a feared pirate hunter and skilled in a three-sword fighting style. Behind his brooding demeanor is a sad story. In the fourth episode, fans get flashbacks to his youth in Shimotsuki Village. After nail-biting combat, he is beaten by Kuina (Audrey Cymone).

Zoro (Maximilian Lee Piazza) is not exactly nice toward her, but she vows to help him train. Together they promise to become the best swordsmen. Sullivan revealed that one of the flashbacks was something Oda requested to be redone.

According to Cinema Daily, “Okay… For example, there’s a scene in one of my episodes between young Zoro and Kuina in Shimotsuki Village. They have this fight. Oda-san watched it and he wanted us to redo it because we did it with Kendo masks on. So we went back to South Africa and did it again just to make sure he was happy with it. I think it’s just so important because it’s his life’s work. We have to make sure he’s happy with it.”

Like the original source material, Zoro’s upbringing was shadowed by Kuina’s sudden death, and the reason he carries her white sword.

You can read more One Piece content in our hub here, and content like how Taz Skylar took care of his co-star here, and if he did all of Sanji’s kicks here.