Gintoki Sakata

Gintoki Sakata
Gin Tama character
Gintoki Sakata by Hideaki Sorachi
First appearance	Gin Tama Lesson 1: Nobody with Natural Wavy Hair Can Be That Bad
Created by	Hideaki Sorachi
Voiced by	Tomokazu Sugita (Japanese) Haruka Tomatsu (Japanese, genderswapped) Kazuya Nakai (Japanese, bodyswapped) Christopher Patton (English, first movie) Michael Daingerfield (English, Gintama° series)
Portrayed by	Shun Oguri

Gintoki Sakata (Japanese: 坂田 銀時, Hepburn: Sakata Gintoki^?) is a fictional character in the manga and anime franchise Gin Tama created by Hideaki Sorachi. Gintoki is the protagonist of the series and his name serves as the basis of the series' title. He is introduced as a former rebel samurai who lives in a fictionalized version of 1860s Japan after being invaded and transformed by aliens. Gintoki once fought the alien invaders until he realized the lack of sense in doing so, leading to him choosing to instead make a living as a freelancer for hire in Edo alongside his friends Shinpachi Shimura and Kagura in order to pay the monthly rent. Across the series, more details about Gintoki's past are revealed leading him to encounter former friends as enemies. As the main character, Gintoki has appeared in most of the episodes of the anime series, as well as in other media related to the franchise, including the film and all of the spin-off video games and original video animations.

Sorachi created the character after suggestions of his editors of having silver-haired samurai. He was originally going to be based on Hijikata Toshizō, the vice-captain from the Shinsengumi special forces. However, Sorachi changed his mind as he did not want the main character to be working into an organization and further remodelled his design into the present one. In the anime series Gintoki was voiced by Tomokazu Sugita who enjoyed his character. For the English release of the first movie, he was voiced by Christopher Patton, whereas in the latest episodes he Patton was replaced by Michael Daingerfield. Shun Oguri will portray him in the upcoming live-action film.