Yesterday, Nintendo premiered the third trailer for The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, which hints at the game’s major plot points and shows off quite a few returning characters. Of course, fans were quick to discuss the return of Ganondorf, and now, the iconic character’s recognizable voice actor has confirmed his involvement with the game.
After months of fan speculation that began with a trailer in February, Matthew Mercer confirmed that he’s voicing Ganon in Tears of the Kingdom in a Tweet last night. “An immense honor that I have thrown myself into doing justice,” Mercer said.
I just got the go-ahead from Nintendo, so I can FINALLY announce my absolute pleasure to be voicing Ganondorf in the Legend of #Zelda : #TearsoftheKingdom.
An immense honor that I have thrown myself into doing justice. pic.twitter.com/GDtoWRUHDx
— Matthew Mercer (@matthewmercer) April 14, 2023
Mercer, known for being the dungeon master of Critical Role, had previously portrayed Ganondorf in his own webseries, There Will Be Brawl. He has also voiced characters including Persona 5’s Yusuke Kitagawa, Overwatch’s Cole Cassidy, and Attack on Titan’s Levi Ackerman.
“Many of you know the weight of expectation on my shoulders for this, and I hope to do you proud,” he continued in a thread. “A huge thank you to @NintendoAmerica @Nintendo And the entire Tears of the Kingdom team for entrusting me with such a badass. <3”
Tears of the Kingdom is set to release on May 12. Of course, Matt Mercer’s role isn’t the only new information we have about the upcoming game — thanks to the trailer, we now know where Tears of the Kingdom will start, when it takes place, and plenty of other small details.
Amelia Zollner is a freelance writer at IGN who loves all things indie and Nintendo. Outside of IGN, they’ve contributed to sites like Polygon and Rock Paper Shotgun. Find them on Twitter: @ameliazollner.