Kanichi Kurita is a Japanese impressionist, comedian, and voice actor, born on March 3, 1958, in Tokyo. His birth name is Yoshiyuki Kurihara. Before entering the entertainment industry, he worked as a company employee. His career began in a roundabout way after he was praised for sounding like singer Hiromi Go at a karaoke gathering, which led him to practice impersonations. In 1983, he appeared on an amateur audition program and was scouted for his talent, making his professional debut as an impressionist in 1984. He would go on to be recognized as one of the Four Heavenly Kings of Impressionists in Japan.

Kurita's entry into voice acting is singularly defined by his association with the character Arsène Lupin III. While performing impersonations, he included Lupin in his repertoire, which led to a friendship with Yasuo Yamada, the original voice of the character. In 1995, Yamada suffered a cerebral hemorrhage and fell into a coma just before recording for the film Lupin III: Farewell to Nostradamus. The production company, seeking someone who could preserve Yamada's interpretation without damaging the character's image, approached Kurita to step in as a substitute. Kurita initially accepted, believing he would only need to record a single line, but upon arriving at the studio, he discovered that no dialogue had been recorded at all and he was responsible for the entire role. This film marked his debut as a voice actor.

Following Yamada's passing, Kurita was offered the role of Lupin III on a permanent basis. He refused several times, feeling unqualified as he was not a trained voice actor, but was ultimately persuaded by the persistence of the production staff. His early performances were met with severe criticism from fans who found his work a poor substitute for Yamada's. Kurita's initial approach was to use his impersonation skills to give the illusion that Yamada was still playing the role, meticulously studying Yamada's way of speaking and intonation. A significant turning point came in 2011, with a partial replacement of the main cast. The new sound director encouraged Kurita to lower his voice and adopt a cooler tone, which helped him move away from merely recreating Yamada and begin to play the character of Lupin with his own personality. Despite this evolution, he maintains that preserving the core character image established by Yamada remains a fundamental rule. As part of his personal ritual, he continues to rewatch the film Lupin III: The Castle of Cagliostro on the day of every recording session to check Yamada's voice before heading to the studio.

Beyond the numerous television specials, theatrical films, and OVAs listed in the user's query, Kurita has also voiced Lupin III in the original net animation Lupin the 3rd vs. Cat's Eye in 2023 and is set to reprise the role in the 2025 film Lupin the IIIRD The Movie: The Blood of the Immortal. His filmography as Lupin spans from the television special Lupin the 3rd: The Pursuit of Harimao's Treasure in 1995 to the television series Lupin the 3rd Part 6 in 2021, and includes the 3D CG film Lupin III THE FIRST in 2019. Apart from his work as Lupin III, Kurita has very few other voice acting credits, as he remains primarily active as an impressionist.