If you look closely at Charithra Chandran’s life it seems like she always was setting herself up to play the iconic Miss Wednesday/Nefertari Vivi in the live-action adaptation of the beloved manga and anime series One Piece. She’s already starred in a number of live-action adaptations including Alex Cross and Bridgerton, which made her a household name as she brought to life the very kind and sometimes naive Edwina Sharma. Even before that, her Bachelor of Arts degree in philosophy, politics, and economics would be the kind of major that the future leader of Alabasta would pick to learn more about how to lead her people. However, she had no idea when she auditioned for the role how much it would all come together, especially as she dove deeper into the role.
It helps, of course, that she got the ultimate stamp of approval on the role from One Piece creator, the very private Eiichiro Oda. But that doesn’t mean that her casting didn’t come with some judgment, especially from “fans” who were used to seeing the character one particular way.
“If you want the manga Vivi or the anime Vivi, go watch those. This is a new and another version of her,” Charithra told Cosmopolitan. “One that I hope people love but also what I think is right for the story of the live-action.”
Like the princess, Charithra does not flinch at the hard questions. In fact, she’s sitting on her couch, calling in from her phone, which makes it all feel more like a FaceTime versus an actual interview. It’s the way that Vivi would be calling her BFFs, the Straw Hats, if video calling existed in the Grand Line. She is here and ready to lead us all to a new era, one where she reigns with the power of heart and justice on her side.
Cosmopolitan chatted with Charithra about bringing another character to the small screen, how her activism connects to Vivi, and the possible truth behind the One Piece.
One Piece, even as a viewer, is very intimidating because of how long it’s been running. How did you tackle the legacy of the IP when you were thinking about taking on this role?
I think ignorance is bliss. I went into it not really knowing much about the original IP and then reading up on it. I just love the story. I really don’t get caught up in the fan bases and stuff like that. It really makes no difference to me. The creative process is the same, whether it’s something that’s based off big IP or original content of a much smaller budget project. All you can do is trust that you’ve put the work in and that you’ve really done your research. Which, in this case, is reading the manga, watching the anime, taking inspiration. I’ve left everything on the table.
I think because the initial response to me was so negative, I’m not really thinking about it too much. How people respond to it is not really any of my business.
Especially with a character that is so beloved, how do you ensure you put your own spin on Vivi?
It’s about preparing as much as possible and leaving it all behind on the day. I did my audition and essentially got the part without knowing what it was for, so I felt really confident in my instincts. Whether it’s Oda-sensei or the team behind the live-action show, they really involve you, they trust you, and they fill you with confidence that you know what you’re doing with the character.
I don’t find the manga or the anime restrictive. If anything, it lifts me up. It provides me the foundation for my performance. I’m not doing an imitation. If you want the manga Vivi or the anime Vivi, go watch those. This is a new and another version of her. One that I hope people love but also what I think is right for the story of the live-action.
There’s also the Miss Wednesday of it all. Some people know her true identity, but there are new viewers here who are experiencing it all for the first time. How was it getting to play two different personas to a character and keeping that surprise?
I always assume that people are probably gonna know that I’m not a supporting character. So I’m sure that they have a sense of something. I don’t know if they will know exactly what the story is. I knew what it was in for and it was really about having conversations of how to make both characters distinct but also cohesive. She is going undercover and the point is that she is totally rejecting who she is to survive in this very insane, dangerous environment. As an actor, it really helped to have those connecting points in my head. I always think what Vivi and Miss Wednesday share in common is diplomacy and strategy. They keep calm under pressure. When it comes to Miss Wednesday’s fighting style, I made it very clear that she’s not a violent person. There is no sadism there. She’s not getting joy even as Miss Wednesday from causing pain in that way. Even though Miss Wednesday’s backstory within Baroque Works isn’t explored in the manga, in my head, I was like, She will never have killed anybody, right? Because she has her partner, Mr. Nine. He is the muscle and Miss Wednesday is the brains and that is the line she would have avoided crossing at all times.
Over the years, you’ve gotten to play characters who were originally white and portrayed them as a woman of color. Has that made you think about the impact in Hollywood as more adaptations come to life?
I would first like to say that I don’t think Vivi is a white character. She happened to be drawn white. But her being white isn’t a key part of her character, her journey, her personality. We have to remember that when Vivi was introduced it was 1999 or 2000, it’s Japan, it’s a very different time. Context and understanding of a certain moment of time in a certain culture is really important. Vivi is also from a desert country. She’s drawn that way, but people have to really acknowledge whether the whiteness of her skin is relevant to her character and to her story. That’s why it makes me so happy when Oda-sensei wrote his letter and he drew Miss Wednesday as having my skin tone. I was like, Wow! First thing, what an honor! Like, that is going up on my wall. But it’s a reflection of how times have changed and our understandings of things have changed. It takes such a magnanimity and humility in the kind of production like this to see that.
For me, it’s so interesting because Hollywood, in so many ways, has come so far when it comes to representation. Admittedly, over the last four years, we’ve seen a lot of backsliding. What I’ve tried to do is hold a very balanced position of both recognizing and being aware. I have a lot of mentors who are 20, 30 years my senior, and they tell me,“Wow, your experiences are so different from us.” So it’s holding space and gratitude for the progress that has been made, while also striving and pushing for more. The pressure that I have that my white peers don’t is that I have to be a representative for my entire demographic and they get to exist as an individual. If I mess up, what doors have I closed for people that look like me? If I fail, what consequences does that have for my successes in a way that my white peers absolutely do not? The next steps would be for actors of color, creatives, characters, to be able to exist not as a figurehead for their entire culture—which, by the way, is not uniform at all anyway—but as individuals.
Do you feel a pressure of representing Britain as well in a very American industry?
I’ve never really thought of myself as representing Britain because I think that the world has so much exposure to British culture. I’m not sure that Idris Elba or Keira Knightley or any of my white British peers on One Piece or Bridgerton are really perceiving themselves as representing Britain. I’m very proud to be British, and I am lucky enough to say I don’t really have any discomfort in that dual identity. I absolutely know what it means to be British Indian, but I do see myself in the public as representing India. I’m so proud to do that. Yes, it’s massive pressure, but there is no greater responsibility in my life. I will rep being Indian until the day I die. I’m so proud of it, and that is definitely at the forefront of my brain, for sure.
I do need to ask: So many of us will never get the chance to work with Oda-san, and especially because he’s a very private person, what is it like to get the chance to work with him to bring your own version of Vivi to life?
I mean, he’s a genius. He’s a creative genius and he works flipping hard. I’m constantly in awe. One Piece is his life’s work and the generosity of spirit it requires to allow something like the live-action to happen, which he is very heavily involved in, of course. I won’t share private conversations, but I will say again that he’s just an incredibly kind and supportive person who has been very protective and supportive of me, and I’m very grateful to that.
You have a Bachelor of Arts degree in philosophy, politics, and economics, which feels so Vivi. Did you get to use your experience in that in creating the character?
My creative process really does start internally. Who is this character? And then who am I? And what similarities does that character and I have? Obviously, I do not have the same experiences as Vivi, thank goodness. But I have been able to relate to that feeling, that moment, that pressure in my life, and I try to link it based on the experiences that she has, the traumas that she has, the background that she has.
I totally agree with you. I do think that PPE is a very Vivi thing, but I don’t think of Vivi as that studious. She is someone who works really hard and who learns by observing. But it is interesting, because you’re right. I’ve never really linked those things in my head.
In that same vein, much like Vivi, you do stand up for what you believe to be good and right and just. Even though she often does it for her own people, we do see her stand up for people she doesn’t know. It feels like another strong connection for you both.
For better or for worse, I think Vivi and I really have a strong sense of justice and a strong sense of service. It comes from very different places though. For Vivi, it comes from a sense of responsibility. To lead, for Vivi, as taught by her family and by her guardians, is to serve. You are in service of other people. You stand behind other people in a way—I don’t want to say like Jesus—to wash other people’s feet. It’s not to have your feet washed. Her love and her sense of “it is my responsibility to protect my people” is where that sense of justice and goodness and standing up for people comes from. Whereas I think for me as an individual, it comes from like the feeling of winning the genetic lottery.
My father came from immense levels of poverty. Through his sheer hard work and luck, I was born in a privileged country. My parents are doctors, able-bodied, healthy, all of these things. I am acutely aware of how much of my life is just down to luck and how unjust the world innately is. That stems from a feeling of responsibility of Well, I must do something to level the playing field for others because so much of what I have is so unfair. So, yes, I absolutely think Vivi and I have a really strong sense of doing good for others and justice, but it comes from different places.
Has getting to play Vivi changed how you view your own sense of duty?
Absolutely. I will tell you exactly the moment that I felt really inspired by Vivi and, as an actor, those are the most wonderful moments when you can be like, Oh my god. I want to embody my character in my real life. And I want to be inspired. Talking about causes that I care about specifically, I remember there were certain people who told me not to speak up about what’s happening in Palestine. I vividly remember going, I have to be a good example to the people that look up to the character that I’m playing. Vivi would 100 percent speak out. There’s absolutely no way I can play this character and I can embody and be this person for months and months and months and not learn anything from it and not embody it when I absolutely need to. She’s inspired me in so many ways.
One of the biggest moments of One Piece is also seeing how Luffy inspires those around him as he tries to become King of the Pirates. So, I’m curious, who has done the same in your own life?
Goodness, I feel I have so many people in my life who have inspired me and have led me onto a better path. But if I think about the person who I really see as a mentor, and, in many ways, has inspired me deeply, it would be the person who played my mum on Bridgerton: Shelly Conn. She’s one of my best friends. She is a ride-or-die for me and really just gets me and pushes me and inspires me and also holds me accountable, which I think your loved one should do. So I would say she really is a beacon of light in this industry.
You’ve done so much already in your career and through various different mediums like theater, voice work, and even music videos. What has been the most challenging and what’s something that you haven’t explored yet that you really want to do?
I think the most challenging is all the in-between moments. Because acting is the joy. Acting is the dream. Acting is the passion. When I’m onstage, on set, whatever, that is the reward. I really think about auditioning and the gains of the industry as the job, and getting to actually do what you love is the reward of it.
What I haven’t done yet in, like, a deep way, I would love to play a real-life person or a historical person. Having to embody the essence of someone real in that way would be such a challenge. It’s so intimidating, but the idea of it is really exciting. When it’s book to TV, I really don’t feel the pressure. But when it’s a real person that people can look at videos and compare, I think there is a lot more pressure there. But it’d be so exciting. It’d be a challenge. And that’s what you want as an actor!
This is the first time we’ll be seeing you come back as a character in another season of a show as we think ahead to season 3. What’s it like to get that chance?
It is announced that I’m in season 3, and you’re right, it’s the first time that I’m doing the second season of a show. It’s been a really exciting new adventure to see how these characters develop. I’m really lucky that in a genre where the environments change, whereas the characters somewhat stay similar, I play a character that really does grow and transform. I don’t take that for granted. I feel very lucky. It’s even bigger and better. I think that's the beauty of the show. I think even beyond season 3, season 4 or 5, however long it continues, I think it’ll just get bigger, bolder, more ambitious.
I do also need to ask this: Oda-san did say he hid the One Piece ending in the ocean. So do you know where it is?
I know the answer is, like, in the bottom of the sea or ocean. Someone go do your thing and find out. But if any of the other cast members are saying that they know what it is, they are lying! We would not be trusted with that. Maybe Kiki [Iñaki Godoy]? Kiki might know.
New mission: Ask Iñaki for the location of the One Piece.
We know it’s a material thing. But, you know, Kiki keeps saying to me is that the One Piece is tacos. And that’s a good prize!
One Piece season 2 is streaming right now exclusively on Netflix.
Original photographs by Pip, courtesy of Netflix.
