Who provided the voice and motion capture for Pikachu in Detective Pikachu?

Ryan Reynolds provided the voice and motion capture for Pikachu in Detective Pikachu.

Released in 2019, the film was the first live-action movie based on the Pokémon franchise. Reynolds played the unusually talkative Detective Pikachu, who investigates the disappearance of Harry Goodman alongside Harry's son, Tim.

The film was directed by Rob Letterman and loosely based on the 2016 Nintendo 3DS game Detective Pikachu. Justice Smith played Tim Goodman, while Kathryn Newton played reporter Lucy Stevens. Reynolds's performance gave the title character a conversational voice unlike the mostly nonverbal Pikachu usually heard in the anime.

Ikue Ōtani still provided Pikachu's familiar Pokémon vocal sounds in the film. That distinction explains why Reynolds is credited with the speaking performance while Ōtani remains associated with Pikachu's traditional voice.