On May 30, 2026, a post on China's SNS Xiaohongshu (RED) asserting "opposition to the idolization of voice actors" garnered various opinions from Chinese netizens.

The poster wrote, "It is true that there are some new-generation voice actors who are good at acting. However, on average, they do not measure up to the veteran generation, and their voice quality and timbre are quite ordinary. I want to return to that era when just listening to their voices moved our hearts, not an era like today where we have to interpret them favorably or supplement with our imagination. After all, the most important thing for a voice actor is their 'voice'."

They then stated, "Even when I say I oppose the idolization of voice actors, I am not opposing voice actors appearing on stage themselves. If it leads to increased income, that is a good thing. What I mean is that too much emphasis is placed on appearance due to the awareness of idolization, and as a result, the evaluation of their voice and acting skills is pushed to the backseat. Voice actors are, after all, voice actors, meaning actors who do dubbing and post-recording. The most important things are, after all, their voice and acting."

In response to this post, Chinese netizens expressed their agreement, saying, "Exactly. I don't particularly expect anything from voice actors' appearances," "Their voice qualities are too similar... It's hard to distinguish them, and they don't leave much of an impression," "Indeed. The reason old-school voice actors engaged in idol-like activities was primarily because they had the skill. Now, the order seems to be reversed, like 'first idolize, then become a voice actor,'" and "I believe the role of a voice actor is purely to give voice to a character. As idolization progresses, more people perform with the same voice no matter the role, and when you listen, it feels like the voice actor themselves is speaking, not the character. Conversely, the character seems to have become merely a stage prop for that person."

On the other hand, comments defending the trend were also received, such as, "But I think cases like 'Love Live!' are quite good. After all, voice actors have to make a living too," "Recently, 2.5D projects are popular, and many Japanese voice actors are good at singing and dancing. All in all, they seem to have acquired many skills. I simply like voice actor songs, and I originally liked 2.5D content, so I don't think it's that bad," and "I agree, but I think perhaps voice acting alone doesn't earn as much money as it used to. Unlike the era when a big hit work meant huge profits, the number of explosively popular works has significantly decreased in recent years, and most old radio and TV programs are gone. In the end, it's probably a matter of market demand."

Furthermore, analytical comments also arose, such as, "I think it's good that they've become idols. Because they have fans, they can engage in rights protection activities, and if not, they might have all been unemployed long ago due to artificial intelligence (AI)," and "Before AI appeared, I think people would have said, 'If you don't like it, don't watch it,' or 'If it appears in recommendations, just click 'not interested'.' But now, it might actually be fortunate. Thanks to appearing in public, it's become easier to assert rights protection against AI. If they had remained behind the scenes, it would have been harder to speak up even if AI took their jobs." (Translation and editing/Iwata)