Chatting About Food and Adventures with Delicious in Dungeon’s Director and Voice Actors

Recently, Anime News Network was able to chat with Delicious in Dungeon‘s director, Yoshihiro Miyajima, as well as two of its main leads, Kentarō Kumagai (Voice of Laios) and Sayaka Senbongi (Marcille). They talked about how they became involved in the project, what viewers should look out for in the show, and their favorite fictional dungeon dishes.

How much did you know about the original manga before auditioning? What was your first impression of Delicious in Dungeon?

I was familiar with the series beforehand but the first time I read the complete series was just before the audition. My first impression was that it was really, really interesting and entertaining.

What do you think makes Laios feel different in comparison to previous roles you have done?

I believe that my character, Laios, is very easily misunderstood. So the way he communicates with the people around him is one of the characteristics that is different from the other roles I’ve done.

What aspects of your character do you find most intriguing to portray? Or what do you like most about playing the character?

As a character, one of the things that is intriguing about him is that he has a very straightforward personality. One of his main goals in the series is to save his sister. Of course, his other is to be able to try eating all these delicious monsters that he’s very curious about.

So, having that sincerity toward his own wants—what he wants to try and do—is similar to what a young boy has. So he has these very sincere emotions that I find very interesting to play. It’s what I like about him. He always listens to his heart and his morals when he acts. He doesn’t try to be funny or mess around but ends up doing so by accident. Those are some of the things that are intriguing about him.

Laios is a serious character in the series and has the role of the party leader. As such, when he acts outside this role, it causes humor. Are you aware of this gap when acting as the character? If not, what do you have in mind while acting as Laios?

I believe Laios doesn’t try to be a leader or act like the head of the party—although that is indeed his role within the adventurers’ party. I don’t think he tries to act as one—that he takes actions just to seem like a leader. He doesn’t even think the role suits him.

However, the actions he ends up taking either to save his sister, Falin, or toward monsters and his curiosity ends up creating that gap or that difference in how he can be funny and serious at the same time. So, when I’m acting, I don’t try to purposely create that gap or try to force it. It comes out naturally because of how he is and the way he thinks.

To viewers who have not read the manga, what is the main appeal of Delicious in Dungeon? Why should they watch it?

In Japanese, Delicious in Dungeon is called “Dungeon Meshi,” which roughly translates to “Dungeon Food.” As that title suggests, the story portrays people eating food in a dungeon. However, dungeons are usually places where there is nothing to eat—which is why adventurer parties need to bring their own food so they can survive.

However, in the case of Laios’ party, they see food differently and start out experimenting with things that aren’t supposed to be edible—and then experiment with how to prepare, cook, and then eat those things. It portrays life in a dungeon.

Of course, this is a gourmet story and gourmet anime but I feel like the story focuses more on how they live, eat, and survive. The importance of what food plays in living and the importance of taking lives to survive is also key. It has a lot of deeper aspects that you can see when you watch the anime or read the manga. It shows a different aspect of food and what it means in our lives. This is one of the things you learn from this anime and is why you should watch it.

Delicious in Dungeon has garnered significant anticipation with its manga’s success. How does it feel to be part of the team bringing this beloved series to an anime and what can viewers look forward to in the adaptation?

As you said, Ryōko Kui‘s manga is already a very popular series, and to make it an anime, we were able to join forces with animation Studio Trigger—which has already increased the hype and anticipation towards this anime.

I feel honored to be able to portray Laios, a very important role in the series, and feel happy to be a part of this series’ creation and production. I look forward to portraying him and doing him justice through my acting.

I can’t decide one specific thing that I want people to look forward to. There’s so much heart and passion that was put into it by every single member of the team. This includes the animation, the story and composition, the art, and designs that show respect to the original manga, the music, and the acting we do to voice the characters.

They have come together with so much love and passion that I can’t just choose one single thing. So I guess what I am saying is that I want you to pay attention to the love and passion that is coming from every single member of the team.

Of the meals shown in Delicious in Dungeon, which one would you eat for dinner?

There are so many that I’m curious about how they would taste and that I would like to try. So, it’s really difficult to choose. But if it was for dinner, I’d probably choose the Mandrake Omelet that appears in the show because it’s the hardest to imagine how it would taste. It looks really good but I can’t imagine how a Mandrake would taste, so that’s the one I’d like to try.

Delicious in Dungeon stars a typical adventuring party. If you were to go on a
fantasy adventure, what character class would you choose and why?

I think I would choose “swordsman”—and more specifically “samurai” because I like Japanese swords. I would like to use those to fight if I were to join an adventurers’ party.

Did you know about the original manga before auditioning? What was your first impression of Delicious in Dungeon?

I knew about the series before I auditioned. It had buzz surrounding it since the manga volumes first came out and I had heard from people all around me that it was a popular series. I knew that it was about defeating monsters and eating them. I was aware of the general story before auditioning.

However, after I got the role, I read through the manga and it was so interesting. It had a really good balance between its serious and comedic aspects. I read through it quickly because I was so immersed.

For fans who are watching Delicious in Dungeon, what would you like them to pay attention to when it comes to Marcille?

I’ve mentioned this before but there are many sides to Marcille. She’s very human and I think that’s one of the most charming things about her. When I’m acting as Marcille, I wonder to myself, “If I were Marcille, would I be able to eat this?” or “I think I could handle this.” I hope that my emotions come across as genuine through Marcille.

Of the meals shown in Delicious in Dungeon, which one would you like to eat?

In Delicious in Dungeon, meat is shown a lot, so I want to try eating the meat. I’ve tried things in real life like sheep and duck—and I like them—so I’m really curious to see what kind of flavors the meat from Delicious in Dungeon has.

Delicious in Dungeon stars a typical adventuring party. If you were to go on a fantasy adventure, what character class would you choose and why?

This is a question of “what if I were an adventurer,” right? I think mage, probably. I have a hard time imagining myself fighting physically. Fighting physically requires a lot of muscle, which I don’t have enough of, so I think fighting with magic is what I would choose.

How did the opportunity to direct Delicious in Dungeon come about?

In 2019, I directed a commercial for the eighth volume of Delicious in Dungeon. The anime adaptation wasn’t yet greenlit at that time. Once it was, TRIGGER contacted me, and so that’s how I became the director.

As you mentioned, in 2019, you directed a special animated commercial by Studio Trigger, celebrating the release of the 8th manga volume. However, this series is your TV anime directorial debut. How do you feel about working on Delicious in Dungeon again—this time as the director of a TV series?

When I worked on the commercial for the manga, I didn’t even think that I would be able to work on an anime series like this. Luckily, I was able to work with Studio Trigger and I’m really happy that I was chosen to be the director for the TV series. At the time, I had no idea that it would turn out this way, but right now I feel incredibly lucky.

Have you spoken to Delicious in Dungeon‘s author Ryōko Kui? What is her involvement in the anime? Was there feedback or exchanges between her and the creative staff?

Thanks to Studio Trigger, I was able to have a very good relationship with Kui-Sensei, but this was the first time that I was adapting a manga into an anime. We received comments from Kui-sensei, like, “I would like it to go in this direction.” She gave a lot of guidance. I’m grateful for all the details and all the help that she provided to support us. I can’t go into the fine details, but I hope that when you watch the series, you’ll be able to tell that she was very involved in what we produced.

What kind of instructions do you give to the voice actors in the voice recording booth?

In general, I told the cast to read through the source material—to get to know the original manga. But as for “in the booth,” it’s hard to say the details of what exactly I’d tell them. I simply tried to bring out their skills, expertise, and acting prowess to bring the characters to life.

For fans watching Delicious in Dungeon, what would you like them to pay attention to?

We love Delicious in Dungeon as much as anyone else. What I want fans to pay attention to is how the anime series brings the manga’s story to life through music, voice acting, and animation. Because the story is not being told only through still images, there may be some new aspects of the story that have appeared thanks to the animation.

I think this is a new and refreshing way to experience Delicious in Dungeon. And for those who have not read the manga, the story is awesome and so much fun. Please look forward to it.

Do you have any messages for fans who want to watch the anime?

The animation staff and the voice cast worked hard to make this awesome anime.
I hope that you have fun watching Delicious in Dungeon.

Delicious in Dungeon is streaming weekly on Netflix.