Goodbye, Lara stands out as one of this season’s most unique anime, with its nostalgic visuals and its fresh spin on The Little Mermaid. To celebrate it, we had the honor of interviewing Hana Hishikawa, the voice actress behind the titular character Lara, via email to talk about her experience with the series and bringing Lara to life.
Congrats on your role as Lara! Goodbye, Lara has been warmly received by audiences. How have you been feeling about the response so far?
Hana Hishikawa: It’s been eye-opening! As an original anime with no source material, Goodbye, Lara started completely from scratch. Despite that, receiving such an overwhelming response from so many people around the world, regardless of country, has made me realize just how powerful the emotion evoked by the anime really is.
I think this was mainly due to director Koide’s leadership in creating the beautiful visuals and thorough depictions of the story that managed to capture the hearts of the viewers — I’m one of them myself. I’m truly happy to be able to share this deep emotion with so many others as well.
How and when were you first approached about voicing Lara, and what were your initial thoughts after reading the script?
Hana Hishikawa: I landed the role of Lara through an audition. It was about three months before the recording, but I didn’t feel very confident during the studio audition, so I was stunned when I received the news. I watched the pilot film, reread the audition script, and formed an idea of what Lara’s character profile would be like, but after reading the script for the first episode, I gained a fresh new interpretation of Lara. So I went back to the drawing board to completely rebuild my approach to her character. I initially thought that she was an innocent, happy-go-lucky girl, but she wasn’t like that at all. Torn between what she loves and what she wants to protect, after much inner conflict, she takes a new step forward. She is a spunky, brave princess.
While Goodbye, Lara is labeled as an original anime, it’s inspired by the legendary fairy tale The Little Mermaid by Hans Christian Andersen. In preparation for voicing Lara, did you revisit the original material or explore other interpretations of the character, such as Ariel from Disney’s The Little Mermaid?
Hana Hishikawa: We received the scripts for Goodbye, Lara session by session based on the recording schedule, so I didn’t know the entire story from the start. Even when I asked about the upcoming plot developments, the staff would dodge the question, so I felt there had to be a reason behind that and got into character without referring to Andersen’s original work or The Little Mermaid.
However, I still had a vague impression of The Little Mermaid, and I think that it was that “vague impression” that played quite an important role. I felt that even if you weren’t well-versed with Andersen’s original work, as long as you shared this vague, common understanding, you’d be able to enjoy Goodbye, Lara, so placing importance on the universally recognized “vague impression” of The Little Mermaid, I layered it into my portrayal of Lara.
Lara is a character with many nuanced emotional layers. Did director Takushi Koide-san give you any notes on how they envisioned her?
Hana Hishikawa: As Lara is very expressive, even in a single episode, her opinions and emotions change constantly. I didn’t receive much feedback regarding my acting from director Koide, but in a certain scene with Lara, I tried doing things differently, and he instructed me saying that “your usual Lara is fine,” so that’s how we recorded it. Throughout the entire series, Lara still remains Lara — that helped me gain a deeper understanding of her character.
Lara carries herself with the elegance of a princess while also possessing a carefree and curious spirit. How did you find the right balance between these contrasting sides?
Hana Hishikawa: I tend to go all out when I do wild, carefree characters, so whenever that happened, [Haru] Yamada-san, the sound director, would remind me, “Act like a princess!” Thanks to that direction, I think the final [outcome] portrays a well-balanced Lara.
Lara herself is a curious type who powers forward relentlessly, but given her upbringing in the royal family, I drew upon that background to deliver my lines with clear diction and tone.
Although Lara is a princess, she’s also a normal teen who’s still searching for her true self — making her emotions often fluctuate dramatically. How did you approach portraying that emotional uncertainty?
Hana Hishikawa: I don’t think pure, 100% clear-cut feelings really exist in this world — for example, “I like this, but hate that,” or “I want to do both, but I can’t choose just one.” I took those complex emotions that everyone has experienced before and expressed them as they are through my voice. I can be indecisive and second-guess myself — I share those traits with Lara; so I could identify with that and project myself into this role.
Lara awakens not only in a different place but also nearly 200 years into the future. How did you approach portraying someone experiencing such overwhelming confusion and wonder all at once?
Hana Hishikawa: I think that 200 years into the future, not only would humans have changed, but their values would be completely different as well. From the start, Lara never tried to adapt, struggling as herself in the present day, but upon meeting Mari, she decides to take a step forward in understanding this new world. Pairing the carefully planned story progression with the change brought along by her interactions with Mari, I gradually eased up on the nervousness and confusion in Lara’s voice. Up until then, she had been surrounded by unfamiliar people, so I was mindful of portraying a tense, on-edge version of Lara.
You worked with Nana Kawaishi-san for the first time here. How did you build chemistry together, and what was it like to act beside her?
Hana Hishikawa: Nana-chan and I are fellow actors who spent countless hours in the studio after recordings, doing multiple takes for a single scene. I love how much grit she has and really respect her as an actor. To get into character, she started taking boxing classes like Mari and even tried adopting the same daily routine as her. Hearing that made me respect and admire her even more. I’m really happy we were able to become as close as Mari and Lara, and I hope that we can continue acting together in this industry for a long time to come.
Lara’s journey begins with a search for her prince — her “true love” — to save her family and kingdom. But as the story progresses, she realizes that the meaning of love is much more complex than she thought. What does “true love” mean to you personally?
Hana Hishikawa: I think love is something that can’t be put into words, something that one can only know by feeling it. It could be one-sided, shared, or even found by getting go — love is something everyone interprets differently. While voicing Lara, I drew upon the memories of the different forms of love I’ve experienced throughout my life. They were all in different circumstances, with different people, at different ages, but every single one was, undeniably, love. It doesn’t even have to be something grand. In fact, I wonder if Lara had already held true love in her hands even from the first episode.
One aspect of Goodbye, Lara that stood out to me personally was how often food is shown as bringing people together — for example, when Mari gives Lara a can of chocolate drink, and when Lara joins Mari’s family for dinner. Why do you think food plays such an important role in the story?
Hana Hishikawa: I think that since eating is living, sitting down at the dining table together is sharing the act of “living” itself. In Japanese, there’s a saying, “to eat out of the same pot,” meaning friends who share both joys and sorrows form deep bonds. Even if we have different ways of thinking or be of different races or ages, as long as we can share the feeling of “this is delicious,” I think that alone is enough for us to connect with each other. I really love the dining scenes in Goodbye, Lara that carry this “connection”! They make me want to visit my family.
Speaking of which, one of my favorite scenes is the said chocolate drink scene from Episode 2. I especially love how the blue pillar visually separates them at first, before Mari steps over to Lara’s side to hand it to her. To me, it felt like a subtle representation of the emotional distance between them beginning to disappear. How do you perceive Lara and Mari’s relationship throughout the series?
Hana Hishikawa: Seeing the two of them from different backgrounds and values slowly get to know each other despite their initial hesitation and become drawn to one another is really wholesome. Each scene of their back-and-forth bantering is a heartwarming favorite of mine. I feel that throughout this series, while Lara gets to know a new world through Mari, at the same time, Mari herself discovers a new world through Lara as well. Goodbye, Lara beautifully depicts how Lara and Mari both bring about positive changes to each other, becoming an irreplaceable presence in one another’s lives.
You mentioned that you aspire to be a seiyuu who makes people wonder, “What kind of performance will they do next?” Is there a dream role or a particular character archetype you would love to challenge yourself with in the future?
Hana Hishikawa: I’d like to try voicing characters of a different age and gender. And of course, I’d like to try my hand at non-human roles — like mascot characters — as well! Up until now, I’ve mostly been able to draw from my own experiences and knowledge as my base when acting, but I want to try voicing a character so far removed from who I am that I wouldn’t be able to apply anything at all. I’m curious to find out what kind of struggles and hurdles I’ll face! (LOL)
To close this off, do you have any messages for your international fans?
Hana Hishikawa: Thank you so much to everyone who took the time to read this interview. It’s a great honor that my voice and words have crossed oceans to reach everyone. Goodbye, Lara is a series that I can proudly declare as “fantastic.” I can confidently say that this is a series that will allow you to experience the sheer brilliance of Japanese animation, so I’d be thrilled if you could show us your support. Please look forward to Goodbye, Lara!
We’d like to thank Hishikawa-san for her kindness and thoughtful answers. Our special thanks also go to Yuna Kishita, KADOKAWA, and Raccoon Dog for making this interview possible.
Goodbye, Lara is currently streaming on Crunchyroll.
Interview by Rakha Alif
Edited by Isabelle Lee and Tamara Lazic
