Yakov Nikitin

Yakov Nikitin is a minor character in the Dr. Stone anime, appearing primarily in flashback scenes related to the International Space Station (ISS) crew.

He is a Russian cosmonaut and doctor (physician) who was aboard the ISS alongside his wife, Darya Nikitina (also a doctor), at the time of the global petrification event. As one of the handful of people not turned to stone due to being in space, he is part of the small surviving crew that includes Byakuya Ishigami, Lillian Weinberg, Connie Lee, and Shamil Volkov.

In the anime (notably around Episode 16 in Season 1), Yakov is portrayed as a somewhat timid and nervous individual, trying to calm the group during the panic following the petrification of everyone on Earth. He and Darya later meet a tragic fate off-screen, becoming lost at sea while attempting to retrieve medicine for an ill crew member (Connie), and both are confirmed deceased.

His role is brief and supportive, mainly helping establish the backstory of how humanity's remnants in space influenced the events on Earth centuries later. He has blonde/yellow hair (often depicted short) and is voiced by Kanehira Yamamoto in Japanese and Mike Pollock in English.