Chris Niosi, voice actor of the Fire Emblem: Three Houses’ male protagonist, has been discredited and recast after admitting to abuse, sexual assault, and breaking NDA.
Niosi is known for his roles in O.K. K.O.!, Octopath Traveler, Tales of Zestiria, and many other shows and games. He has voiced the male version of Byleth, the protagonist of the recently-released Fire Emblem: Three Houses. He plays the same role in the series’ popular mobile game, Fire Emblem Heroes.
However, a recent string of Twitter threads and Tumblr blogs have recently come to light, exposing Niosi’s personal behavior. For instance, one blog post from his most recent ex-girlfriend details multiple examples of Niosi’s manipulative and abusive actions with her. Be warned that the details are graphic and could be disturbing to victims of similar treatment.
Another Twitter thread accuses Niosi of having broken NDA many times in the past. In particular, he spoke openly about his performance in Fire Emblem: Three Houses long before Nintendo had made any official announcement. Breaking NDA is always a serious matter, especially in the secretive world of the games industry.
Niosi has now admitted to these allegations via his Tumblr blog. In it, he apologizes to all of the individuals that he has wronged throughout the years. Here’s only a portion of what he had to say:
I am 30 years old and for about half of my lifetime, I have horribly mistreated and abused friends, colleagues and even my significant others. It is time that I addressed each and every one of those people and responded to their feelings with individual apologies for what I’ve done to hurt them. … I may have learned and developed and improved in some aspects, but not enough. The damage I’ve caused and the abusive acts I’ve committed towards people that I cared about is evidence of that.
Nintendo has not made any public response to the controversy. However, Niosi has since been removed from the credits of Fire Emblem Heroes and his role has been recast. At this rate, it is likely that the same result will befall his work in Three Houses.