In an exclusive interview with The Direct, voice actress Abby Trott broke down her work on Demon Slayer, DanDadan, and Marvel Rivals.
Trott is a versatile voice actress known for bringing characters like Nezuko Kamado in Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba and Momo Ayase in Dandadan to life in the English dub.
Beyond anime, she has voiced Magik in Marvel Rivals and performed the English version of the main theme for Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. Her talent has earned her industry recognition, including a nomination for Best Voice Artist Performance at the 8th Crunchyroll Anime Awards in 2024.
Abby Trott on Creating the Voice of Demon Slayer's Nezuko
- The Direct: "As Nezuko doesn't have many speaking lines in Demon Slayer, what is the process like for voicing her, and do you also perform her other communication sounds?"
Abby Trott: "So anytime you hear Nezuko making a sound in the English dub, that is me. All the growls and grunts and [Nezuko noise]. All of those little tidbits. One thing I do in the studio when I'm recording, when she has bamboo blocking her mouth, sometimes I'll put my finger here just to muffle the sound a little bit so it sounds, you know, not super clear. But not too much because then you can't record your voice.
But Nezuko is an interesting character because yes, she does not speak a lot, but when she does speak, I think it's very important. It's very impactful and very meaningful whenever we hear Nezuko speak... I put a lot of pressure on myself to kind of live up to those moments when we do hear Nezuko talk because it's usually something that's very weighty."
Demon Slayer Infinity Castle Update From Abby Trott
- The Direct: "Have you already started working on the upcoming Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle movies, particularly the first one, given the importance of having both sub and dub options for theater releases?"
Abby Trott: "I don't know if I'm allowed to comment on the recording schedule for the movie, but I do know that they announced that it's coming out this year. So, I'm hoping it comes out sooner rather than later.
I'm so excited to see it. I've heard, rumor has it, that the animation is absolutely insane. But that's not really a surprise because it's been pretty great all along."
- The Direct: "You've only heard the animation's insane?"
Abby: "I haven't seen the animation yet."
Voicing Magik in Marvel Rivals and Potential Future Heroes
- The Direct: "Did you expect Marvel Rivals to become such a hit when you first signed on to voice Magik?"
Abby Trott: "This is so funny. No, I did not expect. I had no idea the scale of this game. I was excited about it and I love voicing Magik because she's really fun. She's got kind of a fun attitude. Also, doing accents, always fun for me. I have not played the game yet, but I've seen gameplay.
So I'm one of those people who, I don't play a lot of online games, mainly because it's dangerous, because I'll just become obsessed and there goes all my time. So I will watch YouTube videos or I'll check out streams and kind of get a sense for the gameplay that way...People are nuts over this game a nd it's really exciting to see. I really caught me off guard."
The Direct: "Would you be interested in voicing a different character in Marvel Rivals given the game's teased future additions and your ability to perform various voices, like the accent for Magik?"
Abby Trott: "Potentially, of course, yeah, I would love to voice another character, that as an actor like that, and especially in voiceover, that's one of the fun parts of voiceover is you can kind of get away with voicing multiple characters sometimes, so I'm definitely open to any auditions that come my way. But it is exciting to see them easing so many characters."
Discovering Abby Trott's Character of Momo in DanDaDan
- The Direct: "Can you talk about your performance as Momo in Dandadan, a newer anime that’s gaining a lot of excitement, and how you landed the role?"
Abby Trott: "I hadn't heard of 'DanDaDan' before I got this audition. And I received the audition with two scenes to perform and two scenes to watch. So I got clips of the Japanese performance.
The first scene was the scene between Momo and Okarun in the hallway. Where Momo and Okarun are butting heads a bit about aliens versus ghosts, that initial [conflict]. And you really get a sense of their dynamic and how they are, they have so much in common, but they're so different. And then the second scene was when Momo is walking through the abandoned building that allegedly is known for aliens being present.
And she's telling Okarun a bit about her childhood and her relationship with her grandmother. And in that scene, she really opens up to him emotionally. So I immediately fell in love with this character because she is so open. She's so dynamic. She's so relatable. It really takes me back to high school and I can relate so hard to all of the emotions.
And she's interesting because she has a different way, especially from me of expressing those emotions. For example, she yells a lot as we've seen in the show. And that's really fun for me as an actor because she is so dynamic making all these quirky little facial expressions. To be able to follow along with that animation and like really try to encapsulate that character. It's been such a fun time. I love Momo so much.
Voice Actress Abby Trott Discusses Her Anime and Video Game Projects
How She Became The Voice of Super Smash Bros. Ultimate
In an exclusive interview, The Direct's David Thompson talked with Abby Trott, where she revealed the back story of "Lifelight," the main theme in Super Smash Bros. Ulitmate.
- The Direct: "Abby, you performed the English theme for Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, which is incredible! Can you share what that process was like and how it feels to be part of such an iconic fandom?"
Abby Trott: "Yeah. So, I am a Nintendo fan. So when I booked this job, I literally cried. I don't know if you've heard that story, but I didn't know what I was auditioning for when I did the audition. So initially I submitted a vocal demo, just a general singing demo.
And then I got a call back that was requested that I would sing the theme to 'Neon Genesis Evangelion' but like a few steps higher in closer to the key of the 'Smash' theme. And, uh, that day I was not feeling vocally super strong and Iwas trying and trying to record it and I just wasn't happy with what I was recording for the audition.
And I emailed the studio and I said, 'Oh, I don't know. I don't think I can send this audition. I'm not sounding great today. I'm so sorry, but thanks for the opportunity.' And the owner of the studio, who is a friend, emailed me back and said, 'Abby, just send it, just send it.' Because they knew how hard I can be on myself.
So this is a lesson to all you kids out there. Take the risk, jump, take the leap. So I sent it in and I booked the job from that audition. So, I found out what it was, the project, 'Super Smash Bros. Ultimate,' and I lost my mind because I'm a huge Nintendo fan, as I said. I got to record in the studio with some reps from Nintendo, kinda supervising, and Greg Chun, another extraordinarily talented voice actor was the vocal director, so I was lucky I got to work with him and we recorded the song.
It's been crazy to be a part of that world just Nintendo in general and one impact that this song has had that's meant so much to me is that I've had a fan come up to me several times at conventions when I'm traveling, doing conventions, and he has autism and his mom told me that this song helped him come out of his shell a little bit and speak more.
It was such a cool moment to see what an impact something like that can have on people that you don't even think of. I'm just over here like, 'Oh, it's so great to be part of Nintendo.' And then hear these stories and it really becomes more real and special."
Check out The Direct's full interview with Abby Trott, including more on some of her other upcoming projects:
Abby Trott can be heard in Marvel Rivals, DanDaDan Season 2 (releasing in 2025), and the first Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle film, releasing this year.
