Before the appointment of Sarah Natochenny as the voice of Ash Ketchum, the original voice actor of the Pokémon character was actually Veronica Taylor. Now that Ash’s arc has come to an end in the anime series, Taylor has reflected on her own time when she was essentially “fired” from the role.
As a result the abrupt recast in 2006, she still struggles and isn’t even sure she’s properly said goodbye to Ash just yet. Here’s what she had to say during a chat with Kotaku:
Veronica Taylor: “I don’t know if I fully have said [goodbye] to Ash. When we were all recast, or fired—however you want to put it—after the eighth season, it was incredibly devastating to not have a chance to go on with the show. I’ve had a bit of PTSD with the ending, of just how sad it is.”
Taylor further notes how she’s not alone though with her struggles and that it’s just the unfortunate realities of the voice acting industry when recasts happen.
“You, as an actor, are so disposable. You have to come to terms with that.”
In the end, Sarah Natochenny was the one to follow Ash’s arc to its conclusion. She even shared her final emotional moments of recording when the series wrapped up last September, calling it an “extraordinary privilege” to voice the same character for 17 years.
Veronica Taylor also chimed in at the time of Ash’s goodbye, mentioning how she had “loved every minute” working on the anime and how it had been “an incredible 25 year journey” with him, Pikachu and the Pokémon community.
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