Vox Machina’s Grog Is the New Sephiroth

Sephiroth is getting a new voice for the final chapter of the Final Fantasy VII remake trilogy, and fans who also follow Critical Role are going to have a field day with it. Speaking on Maximilian Dood’s stream during Summer Game Fest, director Naoki Hamaguchi confirmed that Tyler Hoechlin, who voiced Sephiroth across Remake and Rebirth, won’t be returning for Final Fantasy VII Revelation. Hamaguchi kept the reasons vague, citing only Hoechlin’s unavailability, and the man stepping into the role is Travis Willingham.

If that name rings a bell, Willingham is a fixture of Critical Role, where he plays the barbarian Grog Strongjaw, and his casting turns Revelation into a bit of a Critical Role reunion. His castmate Matthew Mercer, the show’s longtime (now former) Dungeon Master, already voices Vincent Valentine in the remake series, so two of the cast’s most familiar voices will share the screen as Final Fantasy VII heads into its endgame. Recasts always make fans nervous, but trading a screen actor for a full-time voice actor with Willingham’s résumé should take some of the edge off.