BODY: The desert kingdom is coming to Netflix. On the second day of ONE PIECE DAY '26 — the sprawling fan festival held August 22 and 23 at Makuhari Messe in Chiba — producers of the live-action "One Piece" drama pulled back the curtain on four major additions for the show's third season, officially subtitled "ONE PIECE: The Battle of Alabasta."
The newly announced roles are pillars of one of the manga's most beloved sagas. Kohza, the rebel leader whose friendship with Princess Vivi defines Alabasta's tragedy, joins alongside Toto, the stubborn well-digger who never stopped believing in rain. Rounding out the reveal are Pell and Chaka — the falcon and jackal guardians of the royal family, both Devil Fruit users whose loyalty to King Cobra powers some of the arc's most emotional beats.
The announcement lands with series creator Eiichiro Oda continuing in his dual role as original author and executive producer, a hands-on arrangement that fans have credited for the show's surprising fidelity since its 2023 debut. Season 3 follows the confirmed Season 2, positioning the Straw Hats to move from Drum Island's snows into Alabasta's sands.
Casting these particular characters signals just how deep the production intends to go into the arc's political intrigue, where a manufactured civil war pushes Vivi's homeland to the brink. Pell's climactic act of sacrifice, in particular, is among the moments longtime readers will be watching most closely.
The insider take
Here in Tokyo, ONE PIECE DAY has quietly become one of the summer's must-attend otaku events, and Netflix's decision to drop Season 3 news on home turf — rather than a Los Angeles press junket — is telling. It's a bid for domestic legitimacy that anime adaptations rarely earn from Japanese fans, who remain famously skeptical of Hollywood live-action. By tying the reveal to Oda's presence and a Japanese-audience-first stage, Netflix is signaling that this "One Piece" belongs to the fans who made it a national institution, not just a global streaming metric.
Originally reported by コミックナタリー - 最新ニュース (Japanese).