Soma Yukihira in Food Wars! (Shokugeki no Soma) is voiced by Yoshitsugu Matsuoka in the original Japanese version and Blake Shepard in the English dub. Matsuoka’s energetic and highly expressive performance helped define Soma’s confident and fearless personality, while Shepard brought the same intensity and charm to the English adaptation. (behindthevoiceactors.com)

Yoshitsugu Matsuoka – Japanese Voice of Soma Yukihira

Date of Birth

September 17, 1986

About Yoshitsugu

Yoshitsugu Matsuoka is a Japanese voice actor affiliated with I’m Enterprise and one of the most recognizable male anime leads of the 2010s. Known for his energetic performances, emotional intensity, and rapid-fire comedic delivery, he became especially prominent through starring roles in major shonen and fantasy anime.

As Soma Yukihira in Food Wars!, Matsuoka delivered one of his most charismatic performances. Soma’s fearless confidence, playful competitiveness, and explosive reactions during cooking battles required both high comedic energy and emotional sincerity. Matsuoka’s delivery helped establish Soma as one of the defining shonen protagonists of modern food anime.

Fans frequently praised how naturally he balanced Soma’s humor, arrogance, and determination throughout the series’ increasingly dramatic culinary competitions.

Outside of Food Wars!, Matsuoka is internationally famous for major roles in Sword Art Online, Demon Slayer, and No Game No Life.

Hometown

Hokkaido, Japan

Career Highlights

  • Soma Yukihira — Food Wars!
  • Kirito — Sword Art Online
  • Inosuke Hashibira — Demon Slayer
  • Sora — No Game No Life
  • Bell Cranel — Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon?
  • Petelgeuse Romanée-Conti — Re:Zero
  • Fuutarou Uesugi — The Quintessential Quintuplets
  • Jingo Raichi — Blue Lock

Full Current Filmography

The following list reflects documented anime, film, and game credits from publicly available industry sources and may not be exhaustive.

Television Anime

  • Food Wars! — Soma Yukihira
  • Sword Art Online — Kirito
  • Demon Slayer — Inosuke Hashibira
  • No Game No Life — Sora
  • Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon? — Bell Cranel
  • Re:Zero − Starting Life in Another World — Petelgeuse Romanée-Conti
  • The Quintessential Quintuplets — Fuutarou Uesugi
  • Blue Lock — Jingo Raichi
  • Mob Psycho 100 — Teruki Hanazawa
  • Tokyo Ghoul — Koutarou Amon
  • Haikyu!! — Additional Voices
  • Dr. Stone — Hyoga

Anime Films

  • Food Wars! promotional and OVA releases — Soma Yukihira
  • Sword Art Online Progressive films — Kirito
  • Demon Slayer: Mugen Train — Inosuke Hashibira
  • No Game No Life: Zero — Sora
  • The Quintessential Quintuplets Movie — Fuutarou Uesugi

Video Games

  • Sword Art Online game series — Kirito
  • Demon Slayer: The Hinokami Chronicles — Inosuke Hashibira
  • Blue Lock Project: World Champion — Jingo Raichi
  • DanMachi game adaptations — Bell Cranel
  • Food Wars! game projects — Soma Yukihira

Critical Reception

Yoshitsugu Matsuoka’s portrayal of Soma Yukihira received widespread praise for its explosive energy, comedic timing, and emotional intensity. Fans frequently cite his performance as one of the major reasons Soma became such a memorable and likable protagonist.

His ability to transition smoothly between absurd comedy, high-stakes cooking battles, and emotional character moments helped define the tone of Food Wars!.

Our Sources

Blake Shepard – English Voice of Soma Yukihira

Date of Birth

September 19, 1984

About Blake

Blake Shepard is an American voice actor and ADR writer known for his extensive work with Sentai Filmworks and other anime dubbing studios. Over the course of his career, he has voiced a wide range of protagonists in action, romance, sci-fi, and comedy anime.

As the English voice of Soma Yukihira in Food Wars!, Shepard delivered an energetic and charismatic performance that captured Soma’s fearless confidence, competitive spirit, and playful personality. The role required rapid comedic timing, intense emotional delivery during cooking battles, and the ability to carry the anime’s highly exaggerated reactions and humor.

Fans frequently praised Shepard’s chemistry with the rest of the English cast and his ability to preserve Soma’s upbeat determination throughout the series.

Outside of Food Wars!, Shepard is also known for major roles in Akame ga Kill!, Made in Abyss, and Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon?.

Hometown

Texas, United States

Career Highlights

  • Soma Yukihira — Food Wars!
  • Tatsumi — Akame ga Kill!
  • Zen Wistalia — Snow White with the Red Hair
  • Balsa Yonsa — Moribito (select dub productions)
  • Kei Kurono — Gantz
  • Kaname Tosen — Bleach
  • Yota Narukami — Devil Survivor 2
  • Additional leading roles in Sentai Filmworks productions

Full Current Filmography

The following list reflects documented English dub acting and ADR credits from publicly available industry sources and may not be exhaustive.

Television Anime

  • Food Wars! — Soma Yukihira
  • Akame ga Kill! — Tatsumi
  • Snow White with the Red Hair — Zen Wistalia
  • Gantz — Kei Kurono
  • Bleach — Kaname Tosen
  • Devil Survivor 2 — Yota Narukami
  • Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon? — Additional Voices
  • Made in Abyss — Additional Voices
  • Parasyte -the maxim- — Additional Voices
  • Haikyu!! — Additional Voices
  • No Game No Life — Additional Voices
  • Clannad — Tomoya Okazaki (select productions)

Anime Films

  • Food Wars! OVA and promotional releases — Soma Yukihira
  • Bleach film projects — Kaname Tosen
  • Akame ga Kill! promotional releases — Tatsumi
  • Made in Abyss film releases — Additional Voices

Video Games

  • Food Wars! game adaptations — Soma Yukihira
  • SMITE anime collaboration appearances
  • Bleach game projects — Kaname Tosen
  • Akame ga Kill! related media appearances — Tatsumi

ADR Writing & Production

Blake Shepard has also contributed behind the scenes in anime localization and ADR script adaptation.

Notable ADR-related work includes:

  • Food Wars!
  • Haikyu!!
  • Made in Abyss
  • Parasyte -the maxim-
  • Various Sentai Filmworks productions

Critical Reception

Blake Shepard’s portrayal of Soma Yukihira received strong praise from English dub audiences for its energy, confidence, and comedic delivery. Fans frequently highlighted how naturally he captured Soma’s fearless personality and competitive excitement during the anime’s cooking battles.

His performance is often regarded as one of the standout lead roles in the Food Wars! English dub.

Our Sources

Social Media

Published by mayciballesteros03

Leave a Reply