Dragon Ball Super: Broly has already made a huge splash worldwide, raking in over $50M thus far, and it’s about to get even bigger with its United States release this week. As its titular villain (or perhaps antihero?), voice actor Vic Mignogna had a lot of thoughts about returning to play the iconic character.
Despite having played versions of the same character various times over the last fifteen years – in sixteen videogames and three movies, to be exact – Mignogna was confident fans would see a new and different Broly in the Dragon Ball Super film. “It’s a much more well developed Broly, which I’m particularly excited about,” he gushed. “This is [creator] Toriyama’s take on the character, and I think he did an amazing job. The character is compelling and even sympathetic. I would dare say people will feel a connection and sympathy for the character.”
Vic Mignogna’s favorite aspect of this new Broly? “That he’s not just a senseless, mindless killing machine. You actually learn more about where he’s from and why he does what he does.” Most actors would agree with him that the most exciting element of portraying any character is getting inside their heads and understanding their motivations, especially if they’re perceived to be a villain the way Broly has been. “I think the fans are gonna love that new element to his character,” he added confidently.
Broly is a character that’s already been compared to the likes of Boba Fett from the Star Wars franchise in terms of exciting public curiosity despite relatively little development, but Mignogna promised that feeling would be elevated even further with this movie. “Anybody that’s a fan of Dragon Ball is drawn to his power, but in this movie, I think they’re really going to be drawn to his backstory.” With the extra humanity that Toriyama has infused into the character, the actor was convinced that “Fans that love Broly are gonna walk out of this movie loving him even more, and the fans who may not have loved him much because they didn’t really think there was much depth to him are going to love him.”
While Vic Mignogna had certainly garnered much acclaim for voicing of Broly over the years, it’s not the anime role that most speaks to him. That honor belongs to none other than Edward Elric. “Fullmetal Alchemist is probably my favorite thing I’ve ever done,” he explained. “I’ve had the privilege to be a part of a lot of really great shows, but Ed from Fullmetal is one that I’m the most most proud of because of the wild ride of emotions.”
Check out Vic Mignogna’s latest turn as the super Saiyan warrior in Dragon Ball Super: Broly, playing on theater screens nationwide starting January 16th, 2019. Make sure to let That Hashtag Show know your thoughts in the comments below!