Graha Voice Actor Change?

[mildlymoonstruck]

We should be pushing Square Enix for clarification/transparency on the situation rather than JB because they are the entity responsible for making questionable decisions re: this entire thing, such as omitting G'raha's voice line from the ENG trailer when it's present in all others. I'm not going to pretend I'm not biased; I also look on Bailey's early 2024 BAFTA interview where he speaks so fondly of the character and his commitment to it that I'm willing to give him far more grace on whatever the issue is that has necessitated the recast (since I do believe it's a recast, whether permanent or temporary) than I am the company who chooses acting shady over transparency from the jump. And make no mistake, it IS a shady move because it speaks to their own awareness that they knew the fans would clock that G'raha sounded different and made a choice to hide it until they could release the patch. I also agree with what others have said that it's not only disrespectful to the players, but also to Jonathan Bailey, who has spent years including the absolute peak of his career still giving his all with G'raha's vocal performance even when being pulled in multiple directions for high-profile Hollywood and theater commitments, AND the new VA who has stepped into a debut performance for a beloved character, that they outright HID from the trailer. I doubt they'd be treating their JP VAs like that if Uchida was the one who ended up being recast instead, and it is on Square Enix to address this before it's on anybody else.

[paradisea]

We should be pushing Square Enix for clarification/transparency on the situation rather than JB because they are the entity responsible for making questionable decisions re: this entire thing, such as omitting G'raha's voice line from the ENG trailer when it's present in all others. I'm not going to pretend I'm not biased; I also look on Bailey's early 2024 BAFTA interview where he speaks so fondly of the character and his commitment to it that I'm willing to give him far more grace on whatever the issue is that has necessitated the recast (since I do believe it's a recast, whether permanent or temporary) than I am the company who chooses acting shady over transparency from the jump. And make no mistake, it IS a shady move because it speaks to their own awareness that they knew the fans would clock that G'raha sounded different and made a choice to hide it until they could release the patch. I also agree with what others have said that it's not only disrespectful to the players, but also to Jonathan Bailey, who has spent years including the absolute peak of his career still giving his all with G'raha's vocal performance even when being pulled in multiple directions for high-profile Hollywood and theater commitments, AND the new VA who has stepped into a debut performance for a beloved character, that they outright HID from the trailer. I doubt they'd be treating their JP VAs like that if Uchida was the one who ended up being recast instead, and it is on Square Enix to address this before it's on anybody else.

I do agree that this isn't Bailey's fault in the slightest, but one thing where I would see merit in reaching out to him (if at all possible — he's notoriously extremely offline) is in the possibility that Square Enix recast him without notifying him at all. If anyone has been around enough and familiar with the Tales series, you might remember that Troy Baker voiced the main character in Tales of Vesperia, Yuri, and was replaced when the game's definitive edition was released in English. People were assuming it was because Baker had become too popular for Tales, but he later revealed he was never approached about doing additional lines/scenes at all, and voiced that he was gutted over it, because he loves the character and would have jumped at the chance to play him again.

The possibility of the same happening to Bailey does exist, and upsets me immensely to even think about. If he's not been made aware, he deserves to know.

[peachsyder]

I do agree that this isn't Bailey's fault in the slightest, but one thing where I would see merit in reaching out to him (if at all possible — he's notoriously extremely offline) is in the possibility that Square Enix recast him without notifying him at all. If anyone has been around enough and familiar with the Tales series, you might remember that Troy Baker voiced the main character in Tales of Vesperia, Yuri, and was replaced when the game's definitive edition was released in English. People were assuming it was because Baker had become too popular for Tales, but he later revealed he was never approached about doing additional lines/scenes at all, and voiced that he was gutted over it, because he loves the character and would have jumped at the chance to play him again.

The possibility of the same happening to Bailey does exist, and upsets me immensely to even think about. If he's not been made aware, he deserves to know.

Okay, yeah, as a long time Tales fan I was familiar with the Troy Baker/Yuri Lowell situation, and it hadn't crossed my mind yet that it is possible Square Enix recast Bailey and never even discussed it with him. That's gutting. It's an eerily similar case to this, to be honest: actor becomes a part of big projects after his initial casting in the game, and is eventually recast with a soundalike. Fans assume it was just because he's too big for little small time jRPG voice acting role but it turns out the actor never wanted to leave, he was just never asked to return. Troy Baker's tweet for the unfamiliar.

It would be widely unethical for this to be case, but it certainly warrants considering the possibility that Bailey hasn't been made aware he's been recast at all. In which case, my god, I will actually go ballistic lol.

[Dawnrie]

All I can say is I hope it's a combination of having a terrible setup and being sick that his voicework in 7.4 was so inconsistent, because he sounded so off. There were lines that sounded like someone was impersonating Jonathan Bailey, and others sounded more true to form. Just a weird roller coaster for my ears this patch that drove me crazy.

Jonathan Bailey makes G'raha Tia for me. He has done a spectacular job since Shadowbringers, and honestly, one of the few reasons why I'm still playing this game. If SE is replacing him without notice because of budgeting reasons, a lot of people are going to be incredibly disappointed. Replacing him would be a huge mistake.

SE, I beg. Please don't replace Jonathan Bailey.

[mildlymoonstruck]

I do agree that this isn't Bailey's fault in the slightest, but one thing where I would see merit in reaching out to him (if at all possible — he's notoriously extremely offline) is in the possibility that Square Enix recast him without notifying him at all. If anyone has been around enough and familiar with the Tales series, you might remember that Troy Baker voiced the main character in Tales of Vesperia, Yuri, and was replaced when the game's definitive edition was released in English. People were assuming it was because Baker had become too popular for Tales, but he later revealed he was never approached about doing additional lines/scenes at all, and voiced that he was gutted over it, because he loves the character and would have jumped at the chance to play him again.

The possibility of the same happening to Bailey does exist, and upsets me immensely to even think about. If he's not been made aware, he deserves to know.

I wasn't familiar, but this is such a horrifying yet plausible possibility that I'm honestly gutted. To me, Jonathan Bailey's performance made the character every bit as much as the writing did. I really don't have the words for how disgusting it would be if Square Enix pulled something as underhanded as this. They need to clarify what's happened immediately.

[Sui-Kune]

I do agree that this isn't Bailey's fault in the slightest, but one thing where I would see merit in reaching out to him (if at all possible — he's notoriously extremely offline) is in the possibility that Square Enix recast him without notifying him at all. If anyone has been around enough and familiar with the Tales series, you might remember that Troy Baker voiced the main character in Tales of Vesperia, Yuri, and was replaced when the game's definitive edition was released in English. People were assuming it was because Baker had become too popular for Tales, but he later revealed he was never approached about doing additional lines/scenes at all, and voiced that he was gutted over it, because he loves the character and would have jumped at the chance to play him again.

The possibility of the same happening to Bailey does exist, and upsets me immensely to even think about. If he's not been made aware, he deserves to know.

I'm not sure how many realise this anymore, since it was from back in 2006, but this exact thing actually happened to the Pokemon series. The *entire* cast was recast without any warning, and they had no recourse either since this was before social media and all we fans could do to voice our displeasure were mail campaigns and internet forums. And of course the actors themselves were gutted about it, and many still are to this day. (And to add insult to injury, they kept all previous creature voices in the bank so to speak, so they were "kept on" as the Pokemon but presumably without any royalties.)

If this happened to Bailey and this isn't a temporary solution that they will have him go back in to re-record the lines, I feel for him. Famous or not, he clearly loves the role and wouldn't voluntarily step away from it. (And I do hope he's getting the rest he needs, no one needs to overwork themselves to death.) I mean, hells, it's not like they haven't used famous actors before; Ardbert was voiced by Joe Dempsie [Gendry of Game of Thrones fame] off the top of my head, and Final Fantasy XVI has Ralph frickin' Ineson as Cid! So it'd be a piss-poor excuse if budget is a concern. (And frankly, VAs in general are paid pennies in the west as it is, pay them more if anything!)

So yeah, if this is a conscious and meant to be perma-recast, toss my hat in as a fan who wants Bailey back, or even just the damned *choice.*

[Wasselin]

I'm not sure how many realise this anymore, since it was from back in 2006, but this exact thing actually happened to the Pokemon series. The *entire* cast was recast without any warning, and they had no recourse either since this was before social media and all we fans could do to voice our displeasure were mail campaigns and internet forums. And of course the actors themselves were gutted about it, and many still are to this day. (And to add insult to injury, they kept all previous creature voices in the bank so to speak, so they were "kept on" as the Pokemon but presumably without any royalties.)

If this happened to Bailey and this isn't a temporary solution that they will have him go back in to re-record the lines, I feel for him. Famous or not, he clearly loves the role and wouldn't voluntarily step away from it. (And I do hope he's getting the rest he needs, no one needs to overwork themselves to death.) I mean, hells, it's not like they haven't used famous actors before; Ardbert was voiced by Joe Dempsie [Gendry of Game of Thrones fame] off the top of my head, and Final Fantasy XVI has Ralph frickin' Ineson as Cid! So it'd be a piss-poor excuse if budget is a concern. (And frankly, VAs in general are paid pennies in the west as it is, pay them more if anything!)

So yeah, if this is a conscious and meant to be perma-recast, toss my hat in as a fan who wants Bailey back, or even just the damned *choice.*

Joe Dempsie is a star, but nowhere near the level of fame, and presumably salary that Jonathan Bailey likely now commands. Jonathan Bailey is a movie star now.

I hope he continues as Graha but even if he loves it, this is a job for him and I understand if he moves on since he can now make more than Square Enix is willing to pay for voice acting in FFXIV.

I really don't think the work in this patch sounds like Jonathan Bailey, so I hope if it is him, that he is able to re-record it. If he has been recast they better at least try to find someone a little bit closer to his voice and performance because this didn't sound like Graha at all to me.