Video Interview: ‘SPY x FAMILY’ Movie English Dub Cast

Interview: Megan Shipman (Anya Forger) and Natalie Van Sistine (Yor Forger) spoke to The Natural Aristocrat® about the ‘SPY x FAMILY CODE: White’ English Dub.

– This interview transcript contains spoilers. You can also watch the video interview on YouTube & comment.

Anya’s understanding of Divorce as a child

Anya Forger. Art Credit: © 2023 SPY x FAMILY The Movie Project © Tatsuya Endo / Shueisha

THE NATURAL ARISTOCRAT (NIR REGEV): I want to discuss something that’s taken lightheartedly in this film. Becky telling Anya that divorce is horrible and a child’s interpretation of that, as it sets the whole movie in motion.

Megan, how do you feel about the mature concept of divorce that’s presented through a child’s eyes in ‘SPY x FAMILY CODE: White’?

MEGAN SHIPMAN: I think it’s a really good, interesting topic to tackle because it really feels like Anya doesn’t completely understand what divorce is. She just knows that it could be bad. Like, oh, they’re gonna fight!

It’s such an interesting way to tackle kind of a heavy topic. Becky sees it as this thing where it’s like, “Oh, it’s such an inconvenience!” And Anya is like, “Huh, okay…” But then she grasps towards the end that this is a thing that could end her family.

And so, yeah, I think it’s really interesting how they tackle it through a child’s eyes. I feel they do it in a way where it’s very understandable and almost humanizing in a way.

How Natalie Van Sistine voices Yor’s anxiety

Yor Forger. Art Credit: © 2023 SPY x FAMILY The Movie Project © Tatsuya Endo / Shueisha

THE NATURAL ARISTOCRAT: Yor is distraught at the idea of Loid leaving her or potentially cheating on her in SPY x FAMILY CODE: White. ‘Fake’ marriage or not.

Natalie, what did it take for you to produce a voice so full of heartache and anxiousness throughout the film?

NATALIE VAN SISTINE: A lot of it is channeling Yor’s existing anxieties that at any given moment, if she’s not good enough or doesn’t live up to what she thinks are the expectations for a picture perfect wife for Loid… She’s going to lose the part.

‘Cause Yor’s thinking about this as purely nothing more than a ruse and she’s performing a part. If she’s not a good enough actor in that role, she’s going to lose the role. And as an actor that’s pretty familiar.

It’s never grounded in reality most of the time, but you’re like, “If I mess up or I don’t do good, they’re gonna recast me and they’re never gonna work with me again, and they’re gonna hate me!”

So I feel like some of that is a very, very direct sort of line to what we do as actors.

Now obviously Yor and Loid have a much deeper and more complicated relationship than just that. And you can tell there’s kind of definitely more feelings. They’ve lived together for a while now.

And they’ve clearly established a really comfortable, happy relationship together. I think the fear of losing that is genuine because it is clearly this very lovely thing that they share.

Loid buys lipstick for Yor. Art Credit: © 2023 SPY x FAMILY The Movie Project © Tatsuya Endo / Shueisha

So I think it’s kind of thinking through that. And then just from a performance standpoint, the more anxious Yor gets just adding a lot more breathiness and nervousness and then your voice starts to creep up.

It just kind of channels that understanding that her desire to stay in the family is not so much like personally selfish. The family has been so fulfilling for Yor that the idea of losing it genuinely gets her… Like really gets to something deep within her that she’s still trying to figure out too.

How Megan Shipman voices Anya’s innocence

Anya in SPY x FAMILY CODE White. Art Credit: © 2023 SPY x FAMILY The Movie Project © Tatsuya Endo / Shueisha

THE NATURAL ARISTOCRAT: Megan, do you use sense memory or a personal childhood memory to channel the innocence of Anya’s voice?

MEGAN SHIPMAN: Anya’s written so well as just being a simple child, even with having this super human ability of reading other people’s minds. It all comes down to her also just being a kid.

I think that’s the charm of Anya is that through it all, even with this amazing ability, she is just a kid at the end of the day and it doesn’t help her magically be smarter or understand things on a higher level.

She just knows things, whether she knows what it means or not. There’s a lot of little things that I’ve done to kind of capture that, I guess ‘child likeness’.

‘Cause a lot of times kids are just a stream of conscious thought and they will just tell you what they think. Whether it’s good or bad or ugly. Like they don’t care. They’re just gonna tell you exactly what’s on their mind.

They have no filter.

It’s an interesting thing to do… Especially, with how we create the English dub where we have a set script in front of us and we have to say a certain amount of words so that all of the lip flaps look good.

There’s a lot of walking the line between, “Okay, I have to fill these lip flaps up in a very specific way! But I also have to make Anya still have that fun and carefree, childlike thought & feeling to her voice”.

Megan Shipman voices Anya Forger in the SPY x FAMILY movie. Art Credit: © 2023 SPY x FAMILY The Movie Project © Tatsuya Endo / Shueisha

It’s a really interesting line to walk with, trying to make something that’s very scripted, also feel not scripted.

So yeah, it’s really fun to do and I just kind of get to be silly and goofy! (laughs) I love it!

Anya imagining a “God of Toilets” in the film

Anya Forger. Art Credit: © 2023 SPY x FAMILY The Movie Project © Tatsuya Endo / Shueisha

THE NATURAL ARISTOCRAT: Did you get a kick out of the whole Anya imagining a “God of Toilets” scene in SPY x FAMILY CODE: White?

MEGAN SHIPMAN: Oh, absolutely! That was the most childlike thing ever! (laughs) It was so hilarious and I was cackling between every take because it was so good!

Fans at LA Premiere of the SPY x FAMILY movie

SPY x FAMILY CODE White. Art Credit: © 2023 SPY x FAMILY The Movie Project © Tatsuya Endo / Shueisha

THE NATURAL ARISTOCRAT: What was the LA Premiere of SPY x FAMILY CODE: White like with the live audience reception?

NATALIE VAN SISTINE: It was really cool, ’cause normally whenever you’re in an anime and it comes out, it’s normally releasing on a streaming service… And you’re just kind of watching it in the privacy of your own home whenever it comes out.

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – APRIL 11: (L-R) Tyson Rinehart, Anthony Bowling, Tyler Walker, Phil Parsons, Megan Shipman, Alex Organ, Natalie Van Sistine, Cris George, and Lindsay Seidel attend World Premiere Of The English Dub Version Of “SPY x FAMILY CODE: White” at DGA Theater Complex on April 11, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Craig Barritt/Getty Images for Crunchyroll)

I mean, you can go on Twitter or something like that and get an idea of what people think from there. And when we travel and meet people at the conventions and stuff, we can also meet face-to-face.

But to have that experience of sitting in the room in real time and consuming it all with people who were already existing fans of the show was really, really kind of absolutely magical!

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – APRIL 11: Natalie Van Sistine (Yor) attends World Premiere Of The English Dub Version Of “SPY x FAMILY CODE: White” at DGA Theater Complex on April 11, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Craig Barritt/Getty Images for Crunchyroll)

To see that people enjoy this as much as we do in real time was truly magical.

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – APRIL 11: A general view of atmosphere at World Premiere Of The English Dub Version Of “SPY x FAMILY CODE: White” at DGA Theater Complex on April 11, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Craig Barritt/Getty Images for Crunchyroll)

MEGAN SHIPMAN: Yeah, it was definitely such a surreal experience because a lot of times we don’t get the privilege of sitting in a room full of people that have already watched it or are just as big of fans as we are.

’cause like Natalie said, a lot of it is either just online or if people, we happen to meet when we travel for work.

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – APRIL 11: Megan Shipman (Anya) attends World Premiere Of The English Dub Version Of “SPY x FAMILY CODE: White” at DGA Theater Complex on April 11, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Craig Barritt/Getty Images for Crunchyroll)

It’s crazy getting to be in a whole room of people who haven’t seen the movie yet! We all get to experience it together for the first time. It was so surreal and so magical to have that experience.

We don’t get to do it very often, so yeah, it was great!

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – APRIL 11: A general view of atmosphere at World Premiere Of The English Dub Version Of “SPY x FAMILY CODE: White” at DGA Theater Complex on April 11, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Craig Barritt/Getty Images for Crunchyroll)

Will they be dubbing the SPY×ANYA video game?

SPY x FAMILY Season 2 – © Tatsuya Endo-Shueisha, SPY x FAMILY Project

THE NATURAL ARISTOCRAT: Will you be reprising your roles as Anya & Yor in the ‘SPY×ANYA: Operation Memories’ video game? Is there an English dub planned?

MEGAN SHIPMAN: Honestly, we are usually the last people to find anything out because usually recording something is the last part of the process for us.

We haven’t had any word on if it’s gonna get a dub or not, but we love doing video games! And we love getting to do crossovers and things like that when we have a chance to do so.

So yeah, hopefully! We would love to do it ’cause it looks so cute and adorable and either way I’m still gonna play it because it looks so adorable! (laughs) So, yeah.

THE NATURAL ARISTOCRAT (NIR REGEV): Thanks Megan and Natalie, I appreciate both of you coming to discuss the film today. It’s a fun anime movie and I’ve enjoyed both Season 1 & 2 of SPY x FAMILY as well.

MEGAN SHIPMAN & NATALIE VAN SISTINE: Thank you so much!

– Be sure to check out our SPY x FAMILY CODE: White movie review!

– Check out more Photos from the LA Premiere red carpet of the SPY x FAMILY movie!

– Purchase ‘SPY x FAMILY’ Season 1 Part 1 on Blu-ray at the Crunchyroll Store or Amazon.

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SPY x FAMILY Code: White English Dub Cast Interview with Megan Shipman & Natalie Van Sistine. Art Layout by The Natural Aristocrat®, Headshots by talent, Anya Forger Art – © 2023 SPY x FAMILY The Movie Project © Tatsuya Endo_Shueisha

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