In the summer of 2023, Netflix brought One Piece to life with a live-action series, and the adventure has been thrilling ever since. The show follows Luffy (played by Iñaki Godoy) as he sets out to become King of the Pirates by finding the legendary One Piece treasure.
The first season won over many new fans, making Season 2 one of the most anticipated follow-ups. This time, Luffy and the Straw Hats will sail the Going Merry to exciting places like Loguetown, Little Garden, and Drum Island as they continue their journey across the Grand Line.
Joe Manganiello will take on the role of Mr. 0, also known as Sir Crocodile, the main villain of the season. Another new cast member, Katey Sagal, will play Dr. Kureha from Drum Island. In an interview with ScreenRant, Sagal hinted that Manganiello’s Crocodile is being set up as a major villain for One Piece Season 3. This suggests the show will slowly introduce him throughout Season 2 before making him an even bigger threat in the future. The Sons of Anarchy actress’ comments read:
He’s on it, too! Except I think they’re setting him up for the third season. I think—I do believe he came in for the second season, sort of towards the end, because I think he’s the big arch-villain in the third season. All the manga people will know—I don’t read the manga.
Manga fans already know that Crocodile leads the Baroque Works organization. Known as Mr. 0 within the group, he has spent years trying to take control of Alabasta, a vast desert kingdom. He tricks people into seeing him as a hero while secretly plotting against King Cobra, the country’s ruler. Thanks to the Suna Suna no Mi devil fruit, he can create, control, and turn into sand whenever he wants, making him a powerful and dangerous enemy.
Crocodile and Luffy have a lot in common, which might be why Luffy won’t be able to defeat him in just one season. Joe Manganiello, while talking about his character, hinted at how Crocodile’s story could impact Luffy. He referenced Crocodile’s past loss to Whitebeard and suggested that Crocodile shows what Luffy’s future could look like if he doesn’t learn to handle failure. He said:
But what I found, he is this flip side of the coin from Luffy. Potentially, he represents this dark potential future for Luffy. If he’s affected or allows the trauma of defeat to infect him the way it was for me, and I think that there’s a part of Crocodile that wants everyone to suffer the way he did after Whitebeard, or with the disappointment of not becoming the King of the Pirates and letting that go.
Netflix hasn’t announced when One Piece Season 2 will be released yet.