Despite not being within the union system, MiHoYo was still affected by the 2024 SAG-AFTRA video game strike. From March to April 2025, they announced that various English voice actors for both Zenless Zone Zero and Genshin Impact would be replaced, with many actors (such as Emeri Chase, Nicholas Thurkettle, and John Patneaude, who respectively voiced Soldier 11 and Von Lycaon from Zenless Zone Zero and Kinich from Genshin Impact) citing the strike as the reason they withheld their work.

However, this would soon lead to controversy in the Genshin Impact community after Jacob Takanashi announced that he would be serving as the new voice actor for Kinich. Takanashi had described it as "the opportunity to carry the flame from the previous flamebearer", making it seem as if Patneaude had stepped down from the role for reasons other than the strike (it should be noted that Patneaude joined the strike in solidarity, and neither of the actors are believed to be union members). This caused many strike supporters to accuse Takanashi of being a scab, with other Genshin Impact voice actors criticizing him including Corina Boettger (Paimon), Kayli Mills (Keqing), and Valeria Rodriguez (Sucrose). Likewise, the playerbase was heavily divided on the situation. While many agreed with the voice actors' sentiment on the situation, others defended Takanashi from the backlash due to him not being a union actor, and criticized the voice actors for what they perceived to be a lack of professionalism.