Chosen Ones and Powerful Princesses: Talking With “Tower of God’s” Johnny Yong Bosch and Kira Buckland

 

Tower of God has been making quite a stir over the past decade, but the popular South Korean webtoon has gained a whole new level of notoriety now that it’s been turned into an anime with Crunchyroll co-producing the exciting new series. The new Tower of God anime brings S.I.U.’s famous series to life for a whole new audience as it adapts hundreds of chapters of addictive storytelling. The anime looks at a number of individuals who have all entered a rigorous competition inside of a humongous Tower. Whoever is able to reach the top of the Tower is granted whatever they wish, but such a feat looks like it could be close to impossible once the Tower’s tricky tests and duplicitous competitors unveil themselves.

The English dub for Tower of God has just started on Crunchyroll, but it’s already impressing audiences with the enviable roster of voice actors that it’s assembled for the series. Two of Tower of God’s most important characters—Bam and Princess Yuri—are already entertaining heroes. We got the opportunity to chat with their voice actors, Johnny Yong Bosch and Kira Buckland, about their complex characters and Tower of God’s rich universe.

 

Daniel Kurland: Bam is such a stoic character during the start of Tower of God. Was that an interesting change of pace, especially for the main protagonist of a series?

Johnny Yong Bosch: It’s something I definitely liked for that reason.

Bam is a character who you’re always curious what’s going on in their head. When attempting to better understand this character, did you look ahead to Bam’s full history or decide to restrict what you knew about him?

I did a little digging early on but decided not to go deeper into it and ruin an authentic moment from finding out as I voice him.

Bam’s obsession with Rachel is one of the most interesting dynamics of the series. Do you think that this is actually a healthy friendship?

I don’t think it’s very healthy, haha. It’s interesting though and I do feel like the creators built enough mystery around them that I want to find out more.

Bam has an incredible amount of power at his disposal with his use of Shinsu, but he’s also very naïve to the world around him. Is that a fun dichotomy to get to explore?

It is. Someone with a lot of power and no knowledge of how to properly use it can lead to some anime eye candy. I’m all for it.

Tower of God does a great job with the variety of tests and challenges that it throws at its characters. Are there any particular obstacles that Bam has had to overcome that stand out to you?

His earlier moments of staying alive.

Bam is a character who works alongside many others and makes a lot of friends while in the Tower. Is there a certain character that’s especially fun to have scenes with?

RAK!

Tower of God balances so many different sensibilities, but what do you think it is about this anime that’s made it such a massive hit?

I don’t know what works for everyone else but for me I’m interested in the mystery behind the characters and have questions I’m hoping will be answered.

Do you think that Bam has what it takes to reach the top of the Tower and is he a worthy victor to all of this?

I have no idea! But that’s what’s interesting to me. I’m watching to see if he can.

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Daniel Kurland: There’s a real duality present within Yuri as she’s both a fighter but also a Princess of Jahad. Is this an enjoyable dynamic to get to explore with the character?

Kira Buckland: Yes, I absolutely love it! There’s something really fun about playing characters who can at times be a little bratty or full of themselves, but at the same time are strong and determined fighters.

You’ve played a lot of similarly gung-ho characters in the past, but how does Yuri differ from some of your previous roles?

I’ve played a lot of characters who like to act “mean” or poke fun at other characters, but I feel like with Yuri, there is a strength behind her that I don’t always get to explore with other characters. She is fiery but you can tell she also cares about others. She has a very interesting dynamic with Bam right from the start.

The Princesses of Jahad are all very important in the series, but also hold mysterious secrets. Is it entertaining to play a character who has a lot of answers, rather than someone who’s more oblivious?

Yes. The more layers to a character, the more interesting (and challenging, in a good way) it can be as an actor to portray them.

There’s a lot about Yuri to unpack in the series, but how did you approach the character? Did you want to read up on Yuri and her past, or go into the material fresh?

I went into everything fresh! Most of the time, recording schedules for anime are pretty tight, and we’re recording soon after the Japanese release, so we don’t often have extra time to explore and research. Thankfully, we have voice directors and sometimes clients to guide us along in the sessions and make sure we’re staying in the right “zone” for the character.

Tower of God already has a passionate following in Japan and Crunchyroll is putting a ton of faith in the series. Is it a little intimidating to be apart of a series with such lofty expectations?

Totally! I was really excited when I found out I was cast, but also somewhat nervous, because I knew that there would be a lot of eyes on the dub when it came out, and people can be very passionate when it comes to their favorite character getting the “right” voice in English. But I am very honored to be trusted with such an important character, and I hope that everyone has as much fun watching as I did recording.

Yuri is also one of the most powerful characters in this series since she’s had both the Black March and the Green April. In a show like this, is it fun to play someone who’s at the top of the food chain?

Yes! Those are honestly my favorite types of characters to play.

Do you think that Yuri is someone that could reach the top of the Tower? Why do you think that she deserve this victory?

Of course. She is very determined and I feel like she is the type of person who would not back down from a goal.

 

Tower of God is now available to watch on Crunchyroll, with new episodes airing every Wednesday