Mega Man is one of gaming’s most iconic characters, but voice actor Ben Diskin – who starred as the Blue Bomber in 2018’s Mega Man 11 – won’t be reprising his role in the upcoming Dual Override.
In a long post on social media site BlueSky, he said he’s heart broken over the situation, but explained he “won’t work without a union contract”.
According to the star, Capcom has offered him the job – albeit without the protection of SAG-AFTRA.
We’ll contact the company for comment.
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He claims that while he was told there would be “full AI protections in place that guarantee in writing [my] voice will never be used for AI development”, the Japanese publisher has decided to “not go union” for this game.
That’s pushed Diskin into making a difficult decision.
He explained:
“In my heart, I want to believe Capcom would never use AI. But in my head, I'm aware that basically every major corporation is looking to incorporate generative AI to save money. The video game industry is facing record layoffs and huge amounts of uncertainty. I need a union contract to feel safe.”
He added that he doesn’t think it makes sense for actors to “strike for over 11 months to get enforceable AI abuse protections and then turn right around and go back to work without them”.
Diskin then went on to explain he would be willing to work for less money if this meant he got the protections he wants, stressing this “isn’t about money for me”.
But ultimately, as things stand right now, he won’t be reprising his role in the upcoming game.
He concluded:
“I hope Mega Man: Dual Override is even more successful than 11 and that everyone enjoys all the hard work the devs are putting into it. ‘Good luck out there, Mega!’ I just wish I could have been there with you.”
Noteworthy voice actors like Steve Blum have already spoken out in support of Diskin’s decision, describing it as a “mega mistake” on Capcom’s behalf.
“I pray they reconsider,” the Cowboy Bebop star said. “Good for you for taking a stand, brother.”