Mitsuo Iwata

Mitsuo Iwata (岩田 光央, Iwata Mitsuo, born July 31, 1967 in Tokorozawa, Saitama) is a Japanese voice actor affiliated with Aoni Production. Formerly represented by Office Osawa and Across Entertainment, he has been part of the industry since 1977. His wife is fellow voice actor Rikako Aikawa who he married on June 13, 1992. They had a son on January 17, 2006.

Iwata was introduced to the world of acting after appearing in the educational movie Asumo Yuuyake as a representative of his elementary school. While performing, he met child actor Seiji Kumagai who invited him to join Gekidan Komadori. Drawn in by the appeal of stardom, the young boy asked his parents to let him join the theater company for 6 months. They relented to his request after much resistance.

Years later, Iwata's career took a pivotal turn when he starred as Shōtarō Kaneda in Akira. Though his fame became widespread after the film's release, he was not able to make good use of it due to Gekidan Komadori not specializing in voice actor roles. As a result, he changed his profession to voice acting, though the transition was not a smooth one partially because of his immaturity at the time.

It took years for Iwata to gain more recognition in the field of voice acting. He eventually earned an award for best personality at the 7th Seiyu Awards. In his junior high years, he used to be a vocalist for a band called Checker's which performed covers of various stars like The Beatles, Van Halen, etc. He once enrolled in Toyo Institute of Art and Design, but ended up dropping out in favor of his career.

Praised by fans and colleagues as a hard-working professional, Iwata is able to perform a variety of roles ranging from comical to somber due to his honed acting experience. He has provided the voice of Kusanagi in the The King of Fighters series, Sunny in Toriko, and Marcel Tabeoka in Shadowverse: Champion's Battle.

Works

 * Sacred Guardian of Steel Zephel, Zephel Coulthard - Angelique series
 * Otto Holbein - Atelier Elie: The Alchemist of Salburg 2
 * Puma - Gitaroo-Man
 * Emporio Ivankov - One Piece: Pirate Warriors series

He was also one of two radio personalities for the following radio programs:
 * Neoromance ♥ Live HOT! 10 Countdown Radio
 * Neoromance ♥ Live HOT! 10 Countdown Radio II Huu!

Live Events

 * Neoromance 25th Anniversary
 * Neoromance ♥ Festa 11
 * Neoromance 15th Anniversary
 * Neoromance ♥ Festa 10
 * Neoromance ♥ Live 2007 Summer
 * Neoromance ♥ Live 2005 Winter
 * Neoromance ♥ Festa 7
 * Neoromance ♥ Live HOT!10 Countdown Radio II ROCKET★PUNCH!3
 * Neoromance ♥ Festa 4
 * Neoromance ♥ Festa 3
 * Neoromance ♥ Festa 2
 * Neoromance ♥ Festa