In One Piece, Luffy and the Straw Hat crew encounter characters on their way, each more extravagant than the last. And among them, Buggy is on the first place.
This colorful pirate is the captain of the clown crew. He has a special ability to eat the Bara Bara no Mi, a devil fruit that allows him to shred his body into several parts.
It was actor Jeff Ward who had the chance to step into the Bug costume in Netflix’s live-action adaptation. It is impossible to recognize him beyond his big red nose and his lavish make-up. His bombastic interpretation had everyone agreeing with me, fans and newbies alike.
The writers chose to slightly rewrite the story around the pirate, who is much more present in the series than in the manga (at least at the beginning of Luffy’s adventures). Ward actually embodies a dark and cynical version of Bugs.
From Marvel to East Blue
One Piece is not the first role of the 36-year-old actor. He rose to fame in 2016 when he portrayed guru and criminal Charles Manson in the TV movie Manson’s Lost Girls.
The following year, he auditioned for a small role in the Marvel series Agents of SHIELD, played by Clark Gregg (Coulson). Unfortunately for him, his character dies in the first episode.
But when he read the script in the presence of other actors, he made a strong impression on the teams. His colleagues are insisting that Jeff return to the series, in a different role.
A few days later, he got a call from the producers and offered him this time to play Deke Shaw’s character, a former heist (as in Guardians of the Galaxy heists) who lives in the year 2091 when Earth is invaded by the Kree. .
Jeff Ward in Marvel: Agents of SHIELD
Jeff Ward takes on a regular role starting in Season 5, when his character finds himself in 2017, where he decides to help the Agents of SHIELD with their missions. He will play this character until the end of the series in 2020.
The series hasn’t been canon in the cinematic universe at all (even if Marvel seems to be making a comeback at this point with its latest Disney+ productions), there’s little chance we’ll see Deke Shaw/Jeff Ward fighting alongside the Avengers.
While you wait to see the actor again as Buggy in a possible One Piece season 2, you can find him (without his costume) in another Netflix production called Brand New Cherry Flavor. Released in 2021, this fantastic thriller immerses us in the fantastic Hollywood of the 90s. Jeff Ward plays a film producer.
Source: Allocine
Camila Luna is a writer at Gossipify, where she covers the latest movies and television series. With a passion for all things entertainment, Camila brings her unique perspective to her writing and offers readers an inside look at the industry. Camila is a graduate from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) with a degree in English and is also a avid movie watcher.
