Sky Expanding! Pretty Cure" features a male Pretty Cure and a new adult sister Pretty Cure! Akiyoshi Sekine, Aoi Kakuma, Aoi Koga, and others took the stage at the unveiling press conference.

A report on the press conference for the unveiling of the anime "HIROGARU SKY," which will start on February 5 (Sun.), has arrived! Pretty Cure" which will start on February 5 (Sun.). It was announced that a male Pretty Cure and a new adult Pretty Cure will appear.

⇒ The year 2023 marks the 20th anniversary of Pretty Cure! The 20th anniversary PV of Pretty Cure using the song "Tokimeki" written by ikimono-gakari was released!

⇒Click here for the list of 2023 winter anime.

This year marks the 20th anniversary of the "Pretty Cure" series, which has been widely loved since it began airing on TV in February 2004, and on January 30, 2023, the series will unveil the "Expanding Sky" online press conference to present the world of Pretty Cure, taking on new challenges in its history! Precure" online press conference was held.

At the press conference, the main cast members of "HIROGARU SKY! Pretty Cure" main cast members Akiyoshi Sekine, Aoi Kakuma, and Aoi Koga met in public for the first time, and the cast of two new Pretty Cure characters, whose details had been kept under wraps until now, were also announced.

The 12-year-old male Pretty Cure <Cure Wing> will be played by Ayumi Murase, and the 18-year-old new adult Pretty Cure <Cure Butterfly> by Ayaka Nanase.

Cure Wing

Cure Butterfly

The following is the original report.

After overcoming difficult times, the 20th anniversary production has begun, filled with new challenges!

At the press conference, first of all, "HIROGUWA SKY! ABC Animation's Akira Tanaka, producer of "Pretty Cure", took the stage. He reported on the latest situation, saying, "We were featured in many places for the 15th anniversary in 2018, but in the four years since then, there have been fewer opportunities to see Pretty Cure at the Corona Disaster, and we have had to postpone the Pretty Cure movie. In the four years since then, we have seen a decrease in opportunities to see Pretty Cure due to the Corona disaster, the postponement of the Pretty Cure movie, and the postponement of the broadcast due to unauthorized access, which has kept those who look forward to the weekly broadcasts waiting," he recalled.

He then thanked the audience, saying, "Despite these circumstances, 'Precious Party ♡ Pretty Cure' successfully reached its final episode last week and is now being enjoyed by as many people as it was before Corona," and added, "Pretty Cure has always portrayed a character who faces up to difficult situations, but we have been able to overcome difficult situations in real life, and we are now able to show that we can really make a difference. We have overcome the difficulties in the real world, and now we are able to start the 20th anniversary production with a lot of people's expectations. I hope that many children will see the film, and I also hope that former children who saw the film 20 years ago will see it as well," he added emphatically.

Akiyoshi Sekine, Aoi Kakuma, and Aoi Koga made their first public appearance together with their "names"!

Next, Akiyoshi Sekine, Aoi Kuma, and Aoi Koga, the voice actors of the main cast, took the stage. After performing a "name-calling" with the characters who appeared with them, they expressed how they felt when they were chosen to appear in the film.

Akiyoshi Sekine, who plays the role of [Cure Sky/Sora Harewatar], said, "When I heard from my manager that I had been chosen as Cure Sky, I was so shocked that my mind went blank. I was so shocked when I heard from the manager that I had been chosen to play the role of Cure Sky that I couldn't think straight and could only respond, "It took me a while to realize that I was involved in a work that was truly an honor.

Ai Kakuma, who plays the role of Mashiro Nijigaoka in "Cure-ism," said, "I received a surprise report at the office, and everyone said, 'Congratulations from the bottom of their hearts! I was so happy that everyone said to me, 'Congratulations from the bottom of my heart,' and I burst into tears. I wanted to check everyone's face and say thank you to each and every one of them, but I couldn't do it because of my tears," she said. I had been the voice of the partner fairy Labyrin for a year in the 17th "Healty Pretty Cure," and I had watched her back as she fought alongside the Pretty Cure girls. This time, I will be fighting as a Precure myself, and I have another special feeling. I will find out with Cure Prism how I will face Pretty Cure now that my admiration for her has become even stronger.

Aoi Koga, who plays the role of Princess Elle, recalls, "It has always been my dream and goal to be in the Pretty Cure series, even before I became a voice actress, so when I heard from my manager that I had been chosen, I was incredibly happy. Everyone in the office congratulated me. Elle is a princess, so I was so happy to receive a toy tiara that I brought it with me to the show today (laughs). I'm still in a dreamy state of flutters, but I'm happy to be able to participate in the unveiling with everyone like this! I'm still in a dreamy and fluffy state, but I'm happy to be able to participate in this unveiling with you all!

The three then presented their "favorite parts" of the characters they are in charge of. Sekine said, "Sora-chan.
Sekine said, "Sora is a girl from Skyland, and she is a really hardworking girl who is always running as fast as she can toward the hero she longs to be. I thought she was amazing from the moment I read the script," she said, explaining the appeal of Sora's character. I'm so happy to see you here today, I'm almost crying!
I love birds, and Skyland is a country where birds live together. I think it is a very happy place, and the fact that they are always running toward their dreams is a great link.

Kakuma said, "Mashiro-chan is a very kind girl with a warm heart who can relate to people's feelings, and I like everything about her (laughs). I love everything about Mashiro-chan (laughs). Every episode is filled with what every girl longs for, cuteness that is not just on the outside, and the kindness and warmth that comes from the inside. They are so cute that I want to talk about each and every scene (laughs). When Cupplism, who was also in attendance, turned her back to the audience, she exclaimed with delight, "The whole body is so cute without a stitch on it," and added, "If you can, I want you to grow your hair long and copy my hairstyle. You can get cuteness (laughs).

Koga added, "Elle-chan is a child with a very mysterious power. As a baby, everything she sees is new and fresh, and her facial expressions are always so cute. She is a baby, so she can't talk much right now, but I'm really looking forward to seeing how she will grow as she interacts with Sora-chan and Mashiro-chan.

The next question was related to the three characters. First, in reference to Elle, who is growing up as she meets Sky and Prism, Koga was asked about "a scene in which I feel myself growing up. When I think that my activities are cheering everyone up, I wonder if I am also growing a little.

When asked about her "most memorable encounter," Kakuma replied, "I was shown the illustrations of each character for the first time during the studio audition, and they were all so cute that I looked at them for a while. I was particularly shocked by Elle-chan. I couldn't wait to see her in the anime! I can't wait to see her in anime! My guess is the hair above her eyebrows, too cute!" He revealed that he was shocked by the characters in the work.

In reference to Sora, who never fails to write important things for her heroes in her notebook, Sekine was asked about "something she never fails to do," to which she immediately replied, "I tweet the day's weather almost every day (laughs). When I started Twitter about seven years ago, I had no idea what to tweet, but then I realized that I often look up at the sky, so I tweeted that it was going to rain in the evening. I was so glad I brought a folding umbrella with me. At that time, I thought I might be able to help, so I started to do this every day," he said. Sekine, who landed the role of Sora Harewatar after tweeting about the sky, said, "When I got the call, I was like, 'Oh, no, I'm so happy! I was so happy," he said, "I didn't realize until later" that his Twitter account and his selection for the role were connected in the sky.

In reference to the theme of the film, "Hero," Sekine was asked, "Who do you admire and admire as your "hero" and who gives you power? Sekine answered, "People who support me, such as my makeup artist, stylist, and manager, who always tell me it's going to be okay. Kakuma responded, "I get a lot of inspiration from seeing someone working hard or devoting themselves to something they love, so I have a lot of people I consider heroes, including the cast and crew, people at my office, and fans who say nice things to me. The world is full of heroes (laughs). Koga added, "The people I feel closest to are the people in my office who support me, my managers, the people who tell me they are always watching, my family who are my best allies, the cast and crew who work together as a team to fight, there are many moments when I feel like everyone is a hero. Everyone has the qualities of a hero, and I have been reminded through "HIROGARU SKY" that there is no one like me! I feel again through "Pretty Cure" that everyone has the potential to be a hero, and that there is no one like me.

The creator of Pretty Cure announced the new Pretty Cure cast!

Next, the "creator of Pretty Cure," Takashi Washio, Executive Producer of Toei Animation, appeared as a special guest. When asked what kind of people he hopes will enjoy the 20th Pretty Cure, he replied, "First of all, I can't believe that there have been 20 Pretty Cure, and I'm probably the one who doubts it the most. But what we have always done is to bring in new children every year and make sure they can enjoy it every year. That is the most important thing, and if we continue to do that, I am sure that the people who have been watching the show and those who have been watching it for a long time will also enjoy it," he said.

Having launched the first "Futari wa Pretty Cure" and being directly involved in the current "HIROGARU SKY! Producer Washio, who launched the first "Futari wa Pretty Cure" and is directly involved in the current "Pretty Cure. He talked about his memories just before the broadcast of "Futari wa Pretty Cure" and his current state of mind just before the broadcast of "Spreading Skies! Precure," he said, "It's the same. My legs shake, no matter which work I'm working on. I always have a dream right before the broadcast that the ratings are bad and the station calls me in, over and over again until dawn (laughs). (Laughs.) In my dreams, I wonder if I'll be okay this time. (Laughs.) "That's how much pressure I'm under, and how hard it is. But when I get comments from people who have seen the film that it was good or that they were happy, it makes me happy to know that it was good. It's always the same." Looking back, he added, "We create characters from scratch. At first it is just rough lines, then colors are added, and eventually the characters are sold as products in stores. Especially in the first year, you are very surprised. And who knows, maybe someone will buy it. Every time I watch the first episode, I get emotional when various things start to appear in the middle of the episode. That is no different.

As the press conference was coming to a close, producer Washio announced the cast of the remaining two Precures, details of which had not been revealed until now. Cure Wing, a 12-year-old male Pretty Cure a little younger than Sora and Mashiro, will be played by Ayumi Murase, and Ayaka Nanase will play Cure Butterfly, an 18-year-old older Pretty Cure who is older than Sora and Mashiro. As for when Cure Wing and Cure Butterfly will appear, she said, "First, Sky and Prism will establish a proper relationship with each other. Then Wing and Butterfly will follow. If you watch the show every week, they will appear one day, so please watch it every week... (laughs)".

A reporter asked, "There are many new challenges in this work, such as the light blue center and the birth of a boy Pretty Cure. Producer Washio responded, "The first Pretty Cure series started with a black and white center, and did not begin with the character colors that girls liked. In addition, at that time, the work had a strong spirit of challenge, as the characters had to stand on their own feet to fight. As for continuing to work on Pretty Cure, it is absolutely necessary to take on a challenge every year. I think I told you before that eventually, as time goes by, Precure does not have to be limited to women, and I think perhaps this is the right time to do it. We can keep adding new images and new characters. This year marks our 20th anniversary, and with your understanding, we have created a male Precure.

At the end of the press conference, the cast members said, "We would like to thank you all for watching 'HIROGARU SKY! I will do my best to expand your world, to convey something to you, and to spread your admiration and sparkle by watching "Pretty Cure. I hope you will enjoy the show for 30 minutes every Sunday morning." The press conference ended with a message to the audience and a friendly atmosphere.

The press conference ended with a friendly atmosphere! Precure" online press conference
Date: Monday, January 30, 2022
Place: ABC Television Tokyo Branch (online)
Akiyoshi Sekine (Cure Sky/Sora Harewatar), Aoi Kakuma (Cure Rhythm/Mashiro Nijigaoka), Aoi Koga (Princess/Elle)