One Piece Casting Rumors Finally Addressed By Cobra Kai Star, But I’m Not Sure I Believe Him

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As the year ends, the release of *One Piece* Season 2 is getting closer! We’re excited to see new characters like Chopper join the Straw Hat crew, discover new enemies, and find out if the rumors about *Cobra Kai*’s Xolo Maridueña are true. While many fans have speculated he’ll play Luffy’s brother, Portgas D. Ace, Maridueña has said that isn’t happening.

If you’re not familiar with the *One Piece* story from the manga or anime on Netflix, Luffy’s brother, Ace, is a really important character early on. We know Ace will appear in the new live-action series, but the actor, Xolo Maridueña, claims he isn’t playing the part. Here’s what he said, and why I think he’s not being truthful.

Xolo Maridueña Claims He’s Not Playing Portgas D. Ace In One Piece

Xolo Maridueña, known for his roles in *Cobra Kai* and *Blue Beetle*, recently discussed rumors about him potentially playing Ace in the upcoming live-action *One Piece* series on the *Get Rec’d with Straw Hat Goofy* podcast. The rumors, which started with another actor last year, were addressed by Maridueña who suggested they were fueled, at least in part, by Netflix themselves.

I’m honestly shocked by how many people are connecting me with the character. We did a photoshoot during Geeked Week last year with the casts of ‘One Piece’ and ‘Wednesday,’ and Jacob [Bertrand] and I represented ‘Avatar.’ Someone commented on Instagram calling me ‘Ace,’ and Netflix actually liked the comment! It’s wild because I didn’t get the role, and now everyone’s jokingly suggesting I did, which is a little frustrating.

It’s possible this is just a rumor, but I suspect Xolo Maridueña is simply playing coy – which is understandable. If he *is* involved with *One Piece*, he probably has a contract preventing him from confirming or denying anything until an official announcement. He wouldn’t admit anything even if it were true, and frankly, I don’t believe his denials.

As Someone Following This News For A While, I Don’t Buy It

I’ve been following the casting rumors for a while now, and I’m really convinced Xolo Maridueña is going to play Ace. He’s already got a great relationship with Netflix thanks to *Cobra Kai*, which makes the casting feel super plausible. Plus, he did a ton of fight training for that show, which would be perfect for bringing Luffy’s brother, Ace, to life. It’s interesting that Netflix even put out a video of Xolo doing martial arts training with Iñaki Godoy, who plays Luffy – it definitely feels like they’re setting things up!

More On One Piece

I’m really excited for the second season of One Piece, but Joe Manganiello just shared some news about season three that has me even more hyped!

It’s worth noting that Jacob Bertrand, who the actor mentioned was also at Geeked Week, has publicly expressed interest in joining the cast of *One Piece*. He’s even shared videos of himself visiting the set. If Maridueña thought mentioning Bertrand would distract from his own potential involvement in *One Piece*, I don’t think it worked.

To wrap things up, even though Xolo Maridueña is becoming a big name in Hollywood and probably has other options, the role of Ace in *One Piece* doesn’t require a huge commitment. Ace only appears briefly in the Alabasta arc and then pops up occasionally throughout the rest of the series. Unless the show dramatically changes his story to make him a core member of the Straw Hat crew – which seems unlikely – his screen time will be limited. Because of this, it makes perfect sense that he would accept the part.

There’s no official confirmation yet, and the actor has said the rumors aren’t true. We’ll just have to wait for Netflix to make an announcement, if they do.

The second season of *One Piece* will be available on Netflix in 2026. I’m really excited about it, and I hope we don’t have to wait as long for the already-planned Season 3 as we did for these new episodes.

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2025-10-14 21:27