Key information
Eiichiro Oda, the creator of One Piece, intervened to reject an early version of the live-action adaptation proposed by Netflix. The streaming service had initially demanded significant budget cuts for the production.
Showrunner Steve Maeda explained that the production team spent two years developing three different versions of the first season. During this process, the team was uncertain whether the final product would consist of 10 or 8 episodes.
Netflix eventually ordered a reduction to 8 episodes, forcing substantial narrative adjustments. Maeda noted that these changes moved the adaptation further away from the original manga, leading to concerns that fans would notice the deviation and that the series might face cancellation.
Oda expressed his dissatisfaction directly to Netflix, stating that the revised direction violated their prior agreement. His intervention successfully convinced the platform to pursue a more ambitious and faithful adaptation of the source material.
