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Offensive Dragon Ball Z leaks drum up controversy for Funimation

The recordings feature voice actors in character enacting rape and making homophobic commentary.

Photo of Rachel Kiley

Rachel Kiley

dragon-ball-z-funimation-leaks

Funimation, the company that provides dubbing services for the popular franchise Dragon Ball Z, made headlines this week after a series of leaked audio recordings allegedly reveal voice actors from the show saying some truly horrifying things.

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The clips in question makeup nearly six minutes of content and feature several voice actors in character–Goku (voiced by Sean Schemmel), Krillin, Mr. Popo, and Yamcha.

In one recording, Goku just starts yelling “f*gg*t” over and over again. In several others, characters enact rape and graphic sex scenes. 

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Fans of the show expressed their outrage over the content released. “As a queer lover of anime I’m incredibly disappointed in them,” one Twitter user wrote.

https://twitter.com/tourguideconnor/status/1167789966161784832

https://twitter.com/EukariZero/status/1167427084391800832

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https://twitter.com/KevinKridley664/status/1167513553550680064

https://twitter.com/Shurifera/status/1167530207512813568

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Of course, other fans insist that the recordings are all in good fun and that people are taking it too seriously.

“I don’t really see what the problem is,” Chris Ray Gun tweeted, noting that he found the leaks “hysterical.” Another declared that people shouldn’t be upset, because they have most likely “made such jokes among friends” themselves.

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https://twitter.com/Supervegeta_555/status/1167647480055554048

What makes the whole situation more complicated is that the recordings were leaked by Nick Rekieta, a lawyer who previously opened a GoFundMe in support of voice actor Vic Mignogna. Mignogna is engaged in a legal battle with Funimation after the company publicly severed ties with him based on numerous allegations of sexual misconduct.

Some fans who support Mignogna are calling Funimation a hypocrite for firing him while continuing to employ the voice actors in question. And then there are others who insist these are two wildly different considerations.

https://twitter.com/_No_Justice_/status/1167470187077099520

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The highly anticipated Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot game was set to include English dubs by some of the voice actors, but now fans are wondering if their roles–or even the English version of the game itself–will now be forfeited.

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The Daily Dot