By Lindsey Weedston

Copyright dailydot

At the Teen Vogue Summit in Los Angeles, One Piece star Iñaki Godoy surprised fans by speaking fluent Japanese less than two years into studying the language.

The Mexican actor, who plays Monkey D. Luffy in Netflix’s hit adaptation, explained that he wanted Japanese fans to converse with Luffy directly. His rapid-fire delivery, dubbed “Spanish speed” by commenters, impressed native speakers, reinforcing his reputation as an actor deeply committed to his role and audience.

Iñaki Godoy learns his third language

Over the weekend, Godoy joined stars like Marissa Bode of Wicked and Leah Jeffries of Olympians at the Teen Vogue Summit in LA. While talking about the intensity of fandom culture, the One Piece actor mentioned that he’d been studying Japanese since early 2024.

“One Piece was created in Japan, so I thought, maybe I’m just gonna learn Japanese so that Japanese fans can speak with Luffy,” he said before switching to the Eastern language.

@teenvogue Okay but how much of a serve was it when #InakiGodoy pulled out his Japanese?! #Luffy #OnePiece #OnePieceEdit ♬ original sound – TeenVogue

“I started studying in January of 2024. Of course, there are still a lot of words I don’t know. I’m doing my best to study every day.”

Godoy spoke rapidly and with impressive accuracy for someone who has less than two years under his belt. He then conversed with another Japanese speaker in the audience who works in the anime industry.

The young actor got his start on the Telemundo series La querida del Centauro in 2016. In 2022, he landed the role of Juan Ruiz in the Canadian superhero show The Imperfects. The following year, he nabbed the starring role in the highly anticipated adaptation of One Piece, which will continue on Netflix into season two in 2026.

Godoy first officially showed off his Japanese language skill in December 2024 by interviewing One Piece creator Eiichiro Oda with only a little English.

@onepiecenetflix We’ve got quite the treat here, Straw Hats! 🏴‍☠️ 🍖 Iñaki Godoy learned Japanese to sit down with Oda-Sensei to talk about Season 2. From the Grand Line’s wild challenges to the heart of Luffy himself, you won’t want to miss this rare treasure of a moment! 👑 🌊 ♬ original sound – One Piece Netflix

“Using that Spanish speed”

Though some commenters pointed out that Spanish and Japanese have similar vowel sounds, making the learning process a bit easier for him, everyone still seemed impressed. Fans particularly loved to see how far Godoy is willing to go for their sake, as well as for his craft.

TikToker @neilperrycore spoke on “the fact that he learned an entire language just to connect with his fans proves there’s no excuse for big artists with international fanbases who can’t even bother learning the basics of other languages.”

“I rarely see actors being this committed to serving the fans,” wrote @jckeysim, adding, “protect this man.”

Experts in Japanese and language in general had the most praise for the actor, noting that his progress is incredible regardless of what he grew up speaking.

“I’m full Japanese, and I’m not kidding he’s really good at it,” said @_sutekinakomentokakitai.

“He’s been studying less than two years and speaks that well??? I’ve been studying French for freaking ever and I couldn’t form basic conversation beyond hello and how are you without really having to think and translate as I went,” admitted @lea.kelley.

“Dang bro hes using that Spanish speed,” wrote @alanez085.

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