Veteran anime voice actor, ADR director, and line producer Mike McFarland has passed away at the age of 56 following a prolonged battle with glioblastoma. The news was shared by fellow voice actress Brina Palencia and confirmed by industry representatives. McFarland was diagnosed with brain cancer in August 2025 following surgeries earlier that year, which prompted a widespread outpouring of support from fans and colleagues through a crowdfunding campaign organized by voice actors J. Michael Tatum and Brandon McInnis.
McFarland leaves behind a rich legacy across North American anime localization. As a voice performer, he brought memorable presence to iconic characters across multiple eras, including Master Roshi and Yajirobe in Dragon Ball Z, Jean Kirstein in Attack on Titan, Buggy the Clown in One Piece, Makoto Hyuga in the Evangelion film rebuilds, and Goemon Ishikawa in Lupin III: The Woman Called Fujiko Mine. In recent years, he received critical acclaim for his performance as the lead character Hiroshi Odokawa in the mystery drama Odd Taxi.
Behind the Console
Beyond his vocal roles, McFarland played an indispensable role behind the scenes during the formative growth of Funimation and ADV Films. Working as an ADR director, line producer, and script adapter, he helped shape the English localization of landmark franchises including Fullmetal Alchemist, Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood, Dragon Ball Z, One Piece, Eden of the East, and the Evangelion quadrology, establishing foundational direction standards for western anime broadcasting.
