Great Live-Action Actors Who Transitioned Into Animation Voice Over
Animation fans cringe when the latest kids’ movie comes out with a cast comprising of random celebrities chosen more for their star power than their voice-acting prowess. But that doesn’t mean live-action actors can’t evolve into stellar voice actors. We’ve gathered a collection of actors who started their careers in live-action but had their hearts stolen by animation voice over roles.
1. Mark Hamill
Very few actors can claim such monumental roles in both live-action and animation voice over. The original Star Wars introduced Hamill to the world as Luke Skywalker, a role he reprised decades later in the sequel trilogy. In the intervening time, he became the definitive actor for the Joker, starting in Batman: The Animated Series. He also holds dozens of non-Joker roles like Skips from Regular Show and Firelord Ozai in Avatar: The Last Airbender.
2. Phil LaMarr
Depending on their age, fans may have found Phil LaMarr through Mad TV and Pulp Fiction or his later animated roles in Static Shock or Samurai Jack. The animation landscape wouldn’t be the same without LaMarr’s numerous animation voice over performances.
3. Lauren Tom
Lauren Tom started her career with minor roles on shows like The Facts of Life and The Cosby Show and a significant role as Lena St. Clair in The Joy Luck Club. Since then, she’s risen to the most prominent Asian-American performers in animation voice over. She has provided the voices for Connie and Minh Souphanousinphone in King of the Hill, Amy Wong in Futurama, and Numbuh 3 in Codename: Kids Next Door.
4. Kate Micucci
Micucci has had a long live-action career, often playing music alongside her Garfunkel and Oates partner Riki Lindhome. But in recent years, she’s racked up prominent animation voice over roles like Sadie from Steven Universe, Webby from Ducktales, and Velma in the Scooby-Doo franchise.
5. Matthew Lillard
Initially notable for roles in Scream and She’s All That, Matthew Lillard achieved the extraordinary honor of playing Shaggy in the live-action Scooby-Doo movies to becoming the official animation voice over actor for Shaggy’s animated appearances. While he has mostly stuck with Scooby-Doo, he’s still made plenty of appearances in other projects like Generator Rex and Robot Chicken.
6. Steven Yeun
Despite being a fan-favorite as Glenn on The Walking Dead, Steven Yeun initially struggled with finding roles after his character’s death. Luckily, the animation industry saw his talent when the live-action industry didn’t. His animated filmography includes animation voice over roles such as Keith from Voltron: Legendary Defender, Speckle in Tuca & Bertie, and now Mark Grayson in Invincible.
7. Will Forte
Forte made a name for himself as a cast member on Saturday Night Live for eight seasons. Shortly after starting on SNL, he voiced Abraham Lincoln in Clone High. In the last decade, his commitment to animation voice over acting has only increased, mainly in adult animated shows the likes of Bob’s Burgers and Scott Pilgrim Takes Off.
8. Will Arnett
We all know Will Arnett’s voice acting chops from his 77 episodes in Bojack Horseman. But before that, his biggest claim to fame came from his role as Gob Bluth in five seasons of Arrested Development starting in 2003.
9. Kristen Schaal
Today, Schaal’s most prominent roles come from animation voice over, as she voiced Mabel in Gravity Falls and has voiced Bob’s Burgers’ Louise Belcher for over a decade. But before that, the female comedian mainly stuck to network sitcoms like How I Met Your Mother and a few minor roles in films like Norbit.
10. Charlyne Yi
Yi’s uniquely soft voice has made them a recognizable actor in their roles, such as Ruby from Steven Universe and Chloe Park in We Bare Bears. But before that, Yi made their film debut in Judd Apatow’s Knocked Up and spent 21 episodes on House as Dr. Chi Park.
11. JK Simmons
Simmons has starred in over 200 roles since his career began in 1986. His iconic performance in Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man films has led him also to play the character in animated versions. Since his animation voice over acting debut in the mid-2000s, he has quickly become a fan-favorite with his performances as Grunkle Ford in Gravity Falls and Nolan Grayson/Omni-Man in Invincible.
12. Stephen Root
Stephen Root starred in numerous roles from the late 80s onward before finding his stride in both live-action and animation in the late 90s. In 1995, he joined the sitcom NewsRadio, which also kickstarted Joe Rogan’s career. Then, in 1997, he began to voice Bill Dauterive in 258 episodes (so far) of King of the Hill. Even after the end of King of the Hill, he continued to take animation voice over roles on shows like Amphibia, Bojack Horseman, and Bee & Puppycat.
13. Diedrich Bader
Bader started his career with numerous live-action guest spots in familiar shows like The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, Cheers, and Frasier. He dipped his toes in voice acting in the mid-90s with three episodes in Disney’s Gargoyles and quickly ramped up into an industry star. He has dozens of roles under his belt and can claim a spot in the exclusive club of actors who have been called to voice Batman time after time.
14. Chris Parnell
Parnell stood as an NBC comedy icon for over a decade between his eight-year stint on SNL and his role as Dr. Leo Spaceman on 30 Rock. But cartoon fans might know him better for playing guys we love to hate, like Jerry Smith from Rick & Morty and Cyrill Figgis from Archer.
15. Ron Perlman
Ron Perlman’s career spans over forty years, early on earning starring roles in the film Quest for Fire and the 56-episode Beauty and the Beast TV series. Later in his career, he dove deeper into animation voice over acting, specializing in chilling villain performances like Slade/Deathstroke in Teen Titans and the Lich King in Adventure Time.
16. Patrick Warburton
Before Patrick Warburton became iconic for playing deep-voiced large men like Kronk, Brock Samson, and Joe Swanson, he worked steadily in live-action shows and movies, including a 10-episode run on Seinfeld. Cartoons have been kind to him, as he now has one of the most recognizable voices in the industry.
17. Jack Black
Casual Jack Black fans may not know that his live-action career goes all the way back to the mid-80s, and before he stepped into animation, he starred in projects like Waterworld, Bio-Dome, and I Still Know What You Did Last Summer. Since the 2000s, he has successfully added animation voice over acting into his repertoire, notably starring as Po in the Kung-Fu Panda franchise. His talents also appear in more minor roles in Clone High, The Simpsons, and Rick & Morty, among others.
18. E. G. Daily
The voice of Tommy Pickles and Buttercup from The Powerpuff Girls spent about two decades in live-action before finding her stride in animation voice over. She starred in several films, including Pee Wee’s Big Adventure and Streets of Fire. She even blurred the line between the two industries by dub-acting in the live-action Flintstones movie and Little Rascals.
19. Clancy Brown
Multiple generations know Clancy Brown, first and foremost, as the voice behind Mr. Krabs in Spongebob Squarepants. But many may not know he started his career in traditional film and television in the early 80s with roles in Bad Boys, Highlander, and Starship Troopers.
20. Adam West
Child viewers of the 1960s Batman show grew into adults with their own shows and wanted West included in their cartoons. Adam West often voiced a Batman-related character like Grey Ghost in Batman: The Animated Series or Catman in Fairly Oddparents. He also played animated parodies of his real-life self in Johnny Bravo and Family Guy.
21. Keith David
Keith David has voiced animated characters for over twenty years, ranging from Goliath in Disney’s Gargoyles to the President of the United States in Rick & Morty. But before stepping into the recording booth, he had been knocking out roles in major productions for years in films such as The Thing, Platoon, and They Live.
22. Gilbert Gottfried
In a ranking of most recognizable voices, the late Gottfried might very well take number 1. His television debut came in the 1980 season of Saturday Night Live, and he stuck with live-action until his casting in Disney’s Aladdin as Iago in 1992. Since then and until his passing, he has performed animation voice over roles in Cyberchase and other shows.
23. Patrick Stewart
No actor other than Patrick Stewart can boast a career that spans from the Royal Shakespeare Company to playing talking excrement The Emoji Movie. Most know the Shakespearean actor for his role as Jean-Luc Picard in the Star Trek franchise. But he has spent nearly twenty years as the hedonistic CIA Deputy Director Bullock in American Dad.
