Sega pulls Judgment from sale and deletes tweets concerning the game after actor checks optimistic for cocaine [Update]

Actor Pierre Taki has been arrested in Japan for alleged cocaine use. Police officers searched the actor’s automobile following a tip off.

The automobile search didn’t flip something up, however Taki examined optimistic for the drug following a urine check. The report comes from Mainichi News, by way of Kotaku.

Taki lends his voice and likeness to yakuza Kyohei Hamura in Judgment, the brand new game from the Yakuza group. It’s already out in Japan and is because of come to the West later this 12 months.

Japan has a zero tolerance coverage for drug use and possession of cocaine can carry a sentence of as much as seven years. Sega has quickly pulled Judgment from sale whereas it decides what to do. The writer has additionally been deleting tweets concerning the title.

It may seem to be an overreaction, but it surely traces up with Japan’s draconian views on unlawful substances and the tough penalties connected to them.

In 2018, actor Hiroki Narimiya was changed in Yakuza four resulting from alleged cocaine offenses. It might be that Sega is planning to make an analogous change in Judgment, although this may possible be a protracted and tough course of for the reason that game is already within the wild.

As Kotaku notes, Taki additionally voices Olaf within the Japanese model of Frozen, in addition to in Kingdom Hearts 3. Disney Japan has a monitor report of selecting the nuclear choice when its stars are caught up in any medication controversy.

Update: Asahi News reports Disney is certainly trying to substitute Taki as Olaf in Japanese language model of Frozen 2 (thanks, Kotaku).

Update 2: Voice actor Pierre Taki is having a very unhealthy week. First, he was arrested for cocaine use, then Sega pulled Judgment from sale in Japan, and later, Disney determined to search for a brand new, Japanese voice over actor for Olaf in Frozen 2.

Now, Square Enix will launch an update to Kingdom Hearts 3 in Japan, changing Taki’s voice work as Frozen’s snowman (thanks, Gematsu).

Olaf seems within the Arendelle space of Kingdom Hearts 3, the place Queen Elsa and Princess Anna reside. A launch date for the patch was not offered as of press time.

Taki can’t appear to catch a break.