Matthew Lillard
Description
Matthew Lillard is an American actor and voice actor whose involvement in anime voice work is limited but includes a notable role in the early 2000s. While he has an extensive career in live-action and Western animation voice acting, his sole confirmed credit in Japanese anime is for the 2005 original video animation series, Karas.
In Karas, Lillard provided the English dub voice for the character Eko Hoshunin, a central antagonist in the series. Eko is a former Karas, a mystical guardian of a city, who becomes disillusioned with humanity and seeks to destroy it. Lillard voiced the character in both parts of the release: Karas: The Prophecy and Karas: The Revelation. His casting was part of a strategy by the distributor, Manga Entertainment, to feature Hollywood actors in prominent roles to introduce anime to a broader American audience. Behind-the-scenes footage of Lillard recording his lines for the project was included as a special feature on the DVD release of Karas: The Revelation.
Aside from Karas, Lillard's voice acting career has been almost exclusively focused on Western animation. He is best known for being the definitive voice of Norville "Shaggy" Rogers in the Scooby-Doo franchise since 2010, taking over the role from the late Casey Kasem. He has voiced Shaggy in numerous direct-to-video films and television series, including Scooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporated and Be Cool, Scooby-Doo!. Other voice roles in Western productions include appearances in series such as Robot Chicken, The Replacements, and Beware the Batman. Therefore, his work on Karas stands as a singular, distinct entry in his filmography, representing his contribution to the medium of Japanese anime.
In Karas, Lillard provided the English dub voice for the character Eko Hoshunin, a central antagonist in the series. Eko is a former Karas, a mystical guardian of a city, who becomes disillusioned with humanity and seeks to destroy it. Lillard voiced the character in both parts of the release: Karas: The Prophecy and Karas: The Revelation. His casting was part of a strategy by the distributor, Manga Entertainment, to feature Hollywood actors in prominent roles to introduce anime to a broader American audience. Behind-the-scenes footage of Lillard recording his lines for the project was included as a special feature on the DVD release of Karas: The Revelation.
Aside from Karas, Lillard's voice acting career has been almost exclusively focused on Western animation. He is best known for being the definitive voice of Norville "Shaggy" Rogers in the Scooby-Doo franchise since 2010, taking over the role from the late Casey Kasem. He has voiced Shaggy in numerous direct-to-video films and television series, including Scooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporated and Be Cool, Scooby-Doo!. Other voice roles in Western productions include appearances in series such as Robot Chicken, The Replacements, and Beware the Batman. Therefore, his work on Karas stands as a singular, distinct entry in his filmography, representing his contribution to the medium of Japanese anime.