What is the name of Pikachu’s Japanese voice actor in the Pokémon anime?

Ikue Ōtani is Pikachu’s Japanese voice actor in the Pokémon anime.

Ōtani has voiced Pikachu since the beginning of the television series and is closely associated with the character’s distinctive cry and expressive vocalizations. Pikachu generally speaks through its name rather than ordinary human dialogue, making the performance especially recognizable across languages.

She also voices other anime and video-game characters, but Pikachu remains her most internationally famous role. In the Japanese cast, Rica Matsumoto voices Ash, while Mayumi Iizuka voices Misty and Yūji Ueda voices Brock during the early series.

The role is sometimes confused with the English voice of Pikachu, which has been performed by different actors in different productions. The question asks specifically for the Japanese anime performance. Ōtani also reprised Pikachu in later Pokémon anime projects and related media, helping preserve continuity across the franchise’s decades-long history.