Joel McDonald is an American voice actor, voice director, and scriptwriter, widely recognized for his extensive work in English-language dubs of anime series, primarily during his long tenure with Funimation. He was born on December 23, 1980, in Lufkin, Texas. His path to voice acting was rooted in a passion for performance from a young age, participating in school and community theater. He later earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Acting and Directing from Sam Houston State University and worked professionally in stage productions before transitioning to voice work in 2006.

McDonald became a prominent figure in the anime dubbing industry, contributing his voice to hundreds of characters across a wide range of series. Among his most notable and frequently cited roles is Zeref Dragneel in the long-running series Fairy Tail. He is also the voice of Yuga Aoyama in the massively popular My Hero Academia franchise, a role he has reprised in related films such as My Hero Academia: Heroes Rising. Another signature role is Takumi Fujiwara in the Initial D series and its subsequent Legend films, a character he portrayed across multiple installments of the franchise.

His filmography is extensive and diverse, demonstrating a wide vocal range. He voiced Brief in the audacious comedy Panty & Stocking with Garterbelt, Ronald Knox in the Black Butler series, and Meow in the space adventure Space Dandy. In more dramatic roles, he has portrayed characters like Jacuzzi Splot in Baccano!, Yoite in Nabari no Ou, and Take Hirako in Tokyo Ghoul. He also lent his voice to the character Koki Mimura in the Assassination Classroom franchise and its film. His work in the early 2010s included lead roles such as Minato Sahashi in Sekirei and Toshimitsu Kubo in the Baka and Test comedy series.

Beyond acting, Joel McDonald has had a significant impact behind the scenes as a director and scriptwriter. He served as an ADR (Automated Dialogue Replacement) director for numerous high-profile series, including the Funimation dub of One Piece (in which he also voiced the character Bartholomew Kuma), Space Dandy, and Sgt. Frog. His scriptwriting credits include work on shows like Claymore, Dragon Ball Z Kai, and Big Windup!. After 11 years with Funimation, he transitioned to the video game industry in 2018, becoming Gearbox Software's first "VOverlord," where he oversees casting and directing for major game titles such as Borderlands 3. His contributions to anime and voice acting have made him a well-known and respected figure in the industry.