The One Piece anime officially introduced the cast for the Knights of God faction during the Elbaph arc, which kicked off in Japan on April 5. The new characters joining the story are voiced by established seiyuu: Sumire Uesaka as Gunko, Hiroki Yasumoto as Sommers, Shinnosuke Tachibana as Killingham, and Kenjirō Tsuda as Shamrock.

The announcement arrived with a new trailer showcasing the arc's opening and closing themes. Singer Aina The End performs "Luminous" as the opening track, while rock band 36km/h provides the ending theme "Sono Mirai" (That Future). Yūichi Nakamura continues voicing the arc's major character, Loki.

The Elbaph arc represents the first major story under One Piece's new production model. In October 2025, Toei Animation announced the anime would cap its annual output at 26 episodes starting in 2026—a significant reduction from its historical near-weekly broadcast schedule since 1999. Following a three-month production hiatus from January to March 2026, the anime returned in April with Elbaph as the first arc under this adjusted pacing.

According to studio statements, the reduced schedule aims to "incorporate more content, tempo, and pacing of the manga while continuing to leverage the unique storytelling that is only possible with animation." This decision came after years of the anime gradually falling behind the manga's breakneck pace.

The shift follows the Egghead arc, which concluded last year after a mid-run break. During that hiatus, Toei Animation aired One Piece Log: Fish-Man Island Saga, a 21-episode remastered version of an earlier arc featuring reshot scenes and improved artwork.

Crunchyroll is streaming the Elbaph arc for international audiences. The new production schedule should give the animation team breathing room while keeping fans engaged with consistent quarterly content blocks rather than the weekly grind that had become unsustainable.