What Was the "Turning Point" That Came for Voice Actor Shūichirō Umeda in His Second Year of High School? A Chilling Episode Also Emerges in This "The Summer Hikaru Died" Interview

It’s not an exaggeration to say he’s featured as a lead in every anime season—Shūichirō Umeda is one of the most talked-about voice actors today. For the summer 2025 anime lineup, Umeda stars in the leading role in "The Summer Hikaru Died".

For many, Umeda is strongly associated with pure-hearted, kind young boy characters. Hikaru, the character he plays in "The Summer Hikaru Died", certainly possesses that sense of innocence. However, Hikaru is not human, but rather "something else", giving him not only purity but also a dangerous complexity.

Yoshiki Tsujinaka, the other protagonist who becomes deeply involved with Hikaru, is played by Chiaki Kobayashi. Much of the story is taken up by interactions between these two characters. The relationship between a human and a "something else" demands highly dynamic performances, ranging from tense moments to calm glimpses of everyday life.

In this article, we dig deep into a wide-ranging interview, exploring behind-the-scenes stories about their interactions, as well as Umeda’s own experiences that tie into elements of youth and horror.

—You’ve worked with Chiaki Kobayashi, who voices Yoshiki, in the past. Did you feel anything new during your interactions in this project?

Umeda: Although he’s my senior, we’re about the same age, so I get a lot of inspiration from him. I could never actually play Yoshiki myself, but I often find myself wondering how I would go about it if I did, thanks to experiencing Chiaki’s performance.

But when you step away from the role of Yoshiki, you really see that Chiaki is pretty laid-back, which I find quite interesting. Spending time with him is stimulating in a gentle way, since there are many differences between us.

—Were there any scenes you personally enjoyed performing?

Umeda: There are quite a few, but I found it very rewarding to differentiate between Hikaru while he was alive and Hikaru as he is now. I remember feeling genuinely happy when I’d open my script and see, "Ah! Today it’s living Hikaru. There’s a scene with Hikaru as he was when he was alive!"

When I was performing the living Hikaru, I felt a greater sense of freedom compared to when I play Hikaru as he is now. Maybe it was because the boundaries were clearer for the living version, which allowed me to speak freely. Yet, even with the current Hikaru, there’s a unique enjoyment in searching deeper and getting to understand him.