Anime fans seem thrilled by the recent suggestion that it won't be long before we stream Season 3 of One Piece with a Netflix subscription. However, they may want to pump the brakes for the time being. The actor responsible for the rumor that the series will film Seasons 2 and 3 back-to-back is now clarifying his comments, which led many to believe the latter unannounced season was confirmed. The news is a downer, though I'm ultimately still optimistic about the show's future for several reasons.
Brashaad Mayweather, who played Patty in Season 1 of One Piece, took part in an interview that made rounds across the Internet due to one off-hand comment he made about the show's filming schedule. While Mayweather talked about his character returning, many became excited when he said the following:
And hopefully, you know, there's a flashback scene with Patty. We'll see if they flashback to it because they're filming two seasons, Seasons 2 and 3, back to back starting soon. So we'll see what happens.
Not long after those comments made the rounds, the actor retweeted a post on X, explaining that he was merely speculating on One Piece filming Season 3 after Season 2 and that nothing has been confirmed. Even so, I still feel good about the odds of the series returning, thanks to some recent news that's come to light over the past couple of weeks.
One Piece Constructed The Rumbar Pirates Ship For Season 2
CinemaBlend previously reported that One Piece constructed the entire Rumbar Pirates' ship, which is slightly odd. While it's fair to speculate that the ship may appear briefly via flashback in an episode introducing the whale Laboon, the scene in the anime was so brief that it would hardly justify building an entire ship.
What would make more sense is if the ship was constructed now, because the One Piece staff knew there was a good chance it would be used down the road. If Netflix is bringing back the live-action series for Season 3, I could see a scenario in which the Straw Hats would stumble across the Rumbar Pirates ship in the Florian Triangle toward the end of the season and meet their future crewmate, Brook. I still share CB's Adam Holmes' concern of bringing a character like him to life, but I'd still be excited to see it all the same.
One Piece Was One Of Netflix's Most Popular Shows In 2023
Anime fans readily embraced the live-action One Piece adaptation, with CB's Alexandra Ramos calling it everything she wanted out of an adaptation. It seemed the show had a lot of buzz online when it was released, and that was confirmed by Netflix itself. The live-action series had 72,000,000 views in Season 1, making it the streamer's most popular new series in the second half of 2023.
Not only that, but its popularity led a lot of people to check out the anime, possibly to see the differences between the two One Piece shows, more than doubling viewing on the platform. Ratings don't lie and, if the streamer has another hit on its hands, it isn't wild to believe that they'd rush to greenlight Season 3 to film right after Season 2. Said move would help towards an effort to reduce production costs and get more episodes to viewers sooner.
I would add that it seems Netflix is leaning into adapting major anime. Avatar: The Last Airbender was quickly renewed, and the lovely Pokémon Concierge continues to stick with me long after ending. It may not be official at this time that OP is returning for Season 3, but I'd be very surprised if we didn't hear news of a renewal after Season 2's premiere or sooner.
One Piece is currently available to stream on Netflix. Now would be a great time to finally get into the anime while Season 2 is in the works and, as someone who spent the past year watching 1000+ episodes, I would whole-heartedly recommend it!
