Chris ‘Kirbopher’ Niosi Steps Down as Moze in Honkai: Star Rail

Chris “Kirbopher” Niosi announced he will no longer appear as Moze in Honkai: Star Rail. There’s no information as to who will replace him as the new character.

You can read the entire letter via Niosi’s Twitter (X) account. In the statement, he stated that he told his agent to inform miHoYo that he would step back from being the voice actor for Moze in Honkai: Star Rail. This is due to the “undue pain” he would cause for so many people, including his past victims. He noted that none of his actions “have ever been criminal” and that he’s “worked in the industry without incident for the past few years.” However, he has “more work to do before the public feels comfortable” with him appearing in such a major property.

He also requested that people not harass voice actors who have supported him since the announcement. These includes Kyle McCarley, Adin Rudd (SAM), and Griffin Puatu (Sunday). At the end of the letter, Niosi stated that he plans to continue therapy and to learn from the past.

In July 2019, Niosi’s ex-girlfriend accused him of emotional abuse, as well as sexually manipulative behavior. Several other ex-girlfriends and colleagues came out after this blog post to corroborate these allegations, as well as share their own horror stories. He made an apology on his Tumblr blog, though it’s not there anymore. At the time, Nintendo removed him from his role as Byleth in Fire Emblem: Three Houses, on top of him breaking his NDA. Niosi’s reveal as Moze in Honkai: Star Rail came at a time when people were viewing HoYoVerse with a more critical lens due to the Natlan reveal in Genshin Impact.

This is not the first time that a voice actor in a HoYoVerse game stepped down or was removed from a role. Oz’s Chinese voice actor in Genshin Impact committed adultery with fans a month into his marriage. miHoYo removed him at the time, causing Fischl to disappear for a bit in the early months of the game. The company also dismissed Elliot Gindi, Tighnari’s English voice actor in the same game, after allegations arose of grooming and predatory behavior towards minors in his Discord server.

Honkai: Star Rail is readily available on the PS5, Windows PC, and mobile devices. As Chris Niosi is no longer the English voice actor for Moze in Honkai: Star Rail, we will need to wait for the company to reveal his replacement.