Hiroyuki Sanada is a Japanese actor whose career in film and television began in the 1960s, leading to widespread recognition in both Japanese and international cinema. While he is primarily known for his extensive live-action roles in productions such as The Twilight Samurai, Ring, The Last Samurai, and the television series Shōgun, his voice acting credits form a distinct and much smaller part of his prolific career.

One of his notable contributions to anime is the leading role of Jiro in the 1985 animated feature film The Dagger of Kamui, directed by Rintaro. In this film, set during the end of the Edo period, Sanada provided the voice for the protagonist, a young boy named Jiro who embarks on a journey of revenge and self-discovery.

Beyond this classic anime role, Sanada's voice acting work includes the character Sumo Villain in the 2015 internationally released animated film Minions. He also had a small voice part in an episode of the English-language animated series What's New, Scooby-Doo?. His filmography indicates that voice acting represents a very selective area of his work, with the vast majority of his credits being in live-action roles as an actor and, more recently, as a producer.