Sarah Natochenny

Sarah Natochenny

Sarah Natochenny () is an American voice actress. She is best known for voicing Ash Ketchum and various other characters in the English dub of Pokémon, Alisa Mikhailovna Kujou ( Alya ) in Alya Sometimes Hides Her Feelings in Russian, as well as Alicia in the video game Bullet Witch. She has also edited documentaries for networks such as MS NOW and worked as an assistant editor on the films Life of Crime, Cold Comes the Night, Worst Friends, and Cruise.

Early life

Sarah Natochenny

Natochenny was born in the Forest Hills neighborhood of New York City's Queens borough. She is of Russian descent and is fluent in both English and Russian. At the age of 12, she won a bronze medal in rhythmic gymnastics at the Junior Olympics. She graduated from Brooklyn Technical High School in 2005, and studied at the Lee Strasberg Theatre Institute's Young Actors Program, as well as the Upright Citizens Brigade and Magnet Theatre in New York City.

Career

Sarah Natochenny

At the age of 18, Natochenny replaced Veronica Taylor as the voice of Ash Ketchum on the English-language dub of Pokémon, starting with the show's ninth season in 2006, as a result of Pokémon USA bringing their English dubbing work in-house over to TAJ Productions and stepping away from 4Kids Entertainment, who have been dubbing the anime since it first premiered in the West in 1998. They would proceed to do the same thing with all of the other voice actors and their characters. She likened getting the role to "being struck by Pikachu's Thunderbolt" and called it "the most exciting moment of [her] life". She also voices various other characters on the show. She faced some fan backlash for replacing Taylor as Ash, which affected her struggles with depression: "One [bout of depression] that wasn't circumstantial but was kicked off by the reaction I got when I first started. You're doing what you love, and you finally book your first huge role on a show that you loved as a child and people are like, 'You're terrible.' That's really painful to experience." Despite this, she would continue voicing Ash and other various characters on the show, including Ash's own mother, Delia Ketchum, although there would be some criticism that it didn't improve for them and some division between fans on who the better voice actress for Ash was. Her voice for Ash would also evolve over time, having her voice be more distinct, slightly more mature, and eventually a more feminine/childlike sound to differentiate herself from Veronica Taylor's voice for Ash, leading to a more positive reception of her voice over time. This would last until 2023, when Ash Ketchum officially left the series at the end of Pokémon Ultimate Journeys: The Series after more than a quarter-century long run. Despite this, Natochenny still voices various characters and Pokémon in Pokémon Horizons: The Series, taking a step back into voicing some smaller roles in the show after more than 17 years of voicing Ash Ketchum in the anime, lasting 9 seasons longer than Veronica Taylor did in the anime under 4Kids, who finished her run after 8 years.

Natochenny in 2025

Natochenny voiced Alicia in the 2006 video game Bullet Witch. In 2009, she appeared in videos on the comedy website CollegeHumor. In 2019, she won the Outstanding Animation or Gaming - Demo, Best Voiceover award from the Society of Voice Arts and Sciences. In 2020, she co-starred in the live action pilot I Adore Dolores, which was one of No Budge's top picks of the year. She also appeared in three videos for Vanity Fair, talking about the dubbing process and improvising as never-before-seen characters.

Natochenny has appeared on multiple episodes of The George Lucas Talk Show. She is also a film editor, having worked as the primary editor on documentaries for networks such as MS NOW and an assistant editor on the films Life of Crime, Cold Comes the Night, Worst Friends, and Cruise.

Personal life

Sarah Natochenny

Natochenny describes herself as Russian-American and discussed speaking fluent Russian in a 2020 interview with ComicsBeat. She splits her time between Los Angeles and New York City. She has been open about her past struggles with depression.

Natochenny has a cat named after Pikachu. Inspired by a Pokémon episode that dealt with death, Natochenny and fellow voice actress Lisa Ortiz co-founded Voices for Fosters, an organization dedicated to helping rescued animals find permanent homes and advising people on how to foster them. Their website states, "Our goal is to bring the joy of pet companionship to people who didn't think they had the time, end euthanasia and improve care standards for all animals."

Filmography

Anime

<table><thead><tr><th>Year</th><th>Title</th><th>Role</th><th>Notes</th><th>Ref(s)</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>2006–2023</td><td>Pokémon</td><td>Ash Ketchum, Delia Ketchum, Various other characters and Pokémon</td><td>Seasons 9–25</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>2015–2017</td><td>Yu-Gi-Oh! Arc-V</td><td>Aura Sentia</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>2023</td><td>Tokyo Revengers</td><td>Yuzuha Shiba</td><td>Season 2</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>2023–present</td><td>Pokémon Horizons: The Series</td><td>Various characters and Pokémon</td><td>Seasons 26–present</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>2024</td><td>Alya Sometimes Hides Her Feelings in Russian</td><td>Alisa "Alya" Mikhailovna Kujō</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>2025</td><td>Mobile Suit Gundam GQuuuuuuX</td><td>Simus Al Bakharov</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>2025</td><td>Witch Watch</td><td>Riro Takumi</td><td></td><td></td></tr></tbody></table>

Animation

Year	Title	Role	Notes	Ref(s)
2014	Robin Hood: Mischief in Sherwood	Marian
Super 4	Twinkle	English dub
2015	Yoko	Vic
2016	World of Winx	Venomiya, Silke	Netflix series
2018	Peter Pan: The Quest for the Never Book	Tinker Bell	English dub
The Jungle Book	Mowgli	Series 3
Camp Camp	Vera	2 episodes
2019–2021	44 Cats	Lampo Igor Baby Pie	English
2022– 2023	Natural Habitat Shorts	Hot Cocoa Mug Owl	Web animation
2025	Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man	Mila Masaryk / Unicorn

Film

<table><thead><tr><th>Year</th><th>Title</th><th>Role</th><th>Notes</th><th>Ref(s)</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>2006</td><td>Pokémon: The Mastermind of Mirage Pokémon</td><td>Ash Ketchum</td><td>DVD redub version</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>2007</td><td>Pokémon Ranger and the Temple of the Sea</td><td>Ash Ketchum and Clamperl</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>2008</td><td>Pokémon: The Rise of Darkrai</td><td>Ash Ketchum, Ash's Staravia and Dawn's Buneary</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>Turn Left at Pennsylvania Avenue</td><td>Sketch Performer</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>2009</td><td>Pokémon: Giratina and the Sky Warrior</td><td>Ash Ketchum, Ogin, Ash's Staravia and Dawn's Buneary</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>Pokémon: Arceus and the Jewel of Life</td><td>Ash Ketchum, Ash's Staraptor and Dawn's Buneary</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>2011</td><td>Pokémon: Zoroark: Master of Illusions</td><td>Ash Ketchum</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>Pokémon the Movie: Black—Victini and Reshiram</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>Pokémon the Movie: White—Victini and Zekrom</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>2012</td><td>Pokémon the Movie: Kyurem vs. the Sword of Justice</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>2013</td><td>Axel: The Biggest Little Hero</td><td>Young Boca</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>Pokémon the Movie: Genesect and the Legend Awakened</td><td>Ash Ketchum</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>2014</td><td>Pokémon the Movie: Diancie and the Cocoon of Destruction</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>2015</td><td>Pokémon the Movie: Hoopa and the Clash of Ages</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>2016</td><td>Pokémon the Movie: Volcanion and the Mechanical Marvel</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>Sheep and Wolves</td><td>Xavi</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>2017</td><td>Pokémon the Movie: I Choose You!</td><td>Ash Ketchum, Delia Ketchum</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>Pororo's Dinosaur Island Adventure</td><td>Crong, Hamster, Tricolor (voice)</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>2018</td><td>Pokémon the Movie: The Power of Us</td><td>Ash Ketchum, Toren's Chansey</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>2019</td><td>Pokémon: Mewtwo Strikes Back—Evolution</td><td>Ash Ketchum</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>2021</td><td>Pokémon the Movie: Secrets of the Jungle</td><td>Ash Ketchum and Delia Ketchum</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>Ghostbusters: Afterlife</td><td>Mini-Puft</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>Girls und Panzer das Finale: Part 1</td><td>Klara</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>Seal Team</td><td>Shark</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>2023</td><td>Mavka: The Forest Song</td><td>Kylina</td><td>English dub</td><td></td></tr></tbody></table>

Video games

<table><thead><tr><th>Year</th><th>Title</th><th>Role</th><th>Notes</th><th>Ref(s)</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>2006</td><td>Bullet Witch</td><td>Alicia</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>2009</td><td>PokéPark Wii: Pikachu's Adventure</td><td>Celebi, Starly, Staravia, Staraptor, Mismagius, Buneary, Lopunny, Roselia, Roserade</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>PokéPark 2: Wonders Beyond</td><td>Starly, Staravia, Misdreavus, Buneary, Lopunny, Roselia</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>2013</td><td>Gangstar Vegas</td><td>Roni Q</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>Grand Theft Auto V</td><td>The Local Population</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>Thor: The Dark World</td><td>Sif</td><td>iOS</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>2014</td><td>Asphalt Overdrive</td><td>Getaway Girl</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>2018</td><td>Super Smash Bros. Ultimate</td><td>Chansey</td><td>Archive audio</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>White Day</td><td>Han So-young</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>2022</td><td>Pokémon Masters</td><td>Ash Ketchum</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>2024</td><td>Fortnite Battle Royale</td><td>Ringmaster Scarr</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>2025</td><td>Date Everything!</td><td>Lucinda</td><td></td><td></td></tr></tbody></table>

Television

<table><thead><tr><th>Year</th><th>Title</th><th>Role</th><th>Notes</th><th>Ref(s)</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>2024</td><td>Game Changer</td><td>Herself</td><td>Episode: "Pencils Down"</td><td></td></tr></tbody></table>

Accolades

Sarah Natochenny

<table><thead><tr><th>Year</th><th>Award</th><th>Category</th><th>Result</th><th>Ref.</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>2025</td><td>9th Crunchyroll Anime Awards</td><td>Best VA Performance (English) as Alisa "Alya" Mikhailovna Kujō (Alya Sometimes Hides Her Feelings in Russian)</td><td>Nominated</td><td></td></tr></tbody></table>