'The One Piece' Director Says Remake Was Supposed to be Even Shorter

Condensing around 50 chapters of the original One Piece manga into just seven episodes was already a challenge for the Netflix remake. But according to director Masashi Koizuka, the first season of The One Piece almost ended up being even shorter.

In an interview with Den of Geek, he revealed that the series had to be given more runtime because he decided to include moments from the original material that he considered essential.

"The series has a runtime of 300 minutes. It was originally planned to be shorter than that, but I had so many things I loved and wanted to include. The runtime just kept getting longer and longer," the director explained.

Produced by WIT Studio, the first season will offer a new adaptation of the East Blue Saga, starting from Chapter 1 of Eiichiro Oda's manga. According to Netflix, the seven episodes will adapt approximately the first 50 chapters of the work, following the early formation of the Straw Hat Pirates up to Luffy's meeting with Sanji at the floating restaurant Baratie.

Koizuka also emphasized that the goal is not just to condense the story, but to present a new interpretation of the classic. The director also revealed that he received advice from Eiichiro Oda himself: instead of copying the manga panel by panel, the team should create its own vision of the work. The One Piece premieres on Netflix in February 2027, with all seven episodes released at once.