Because my previous report on celebrity voice acting turned out to be so popular on this blog, I may just have to do this on a regular basis.
Here’s another summary of “celebrity” voice acting news:
– Victoria Beckham, aka “Posh Spice,” will guest star as a princess in an upcoming episode of SpongeBob Squarepants. Mirror.co.uk reports:
Posh, 34, recorded the voice-over late last year in LA. She was persuaded to take the part by youngest son Cruz, four – who is a huge fan of Spongebob.
And her performance impressed Nickelodeon bosses so much, the former Spice Girl is being lined up for more voice-over work.
A source said: “Victoria was a complete pro and finished all her takes in a day.
“She isn’t interested in becoming an actress, but voice-over work is something that appealed. She joked that she could simply rock up to the studios in a trackie and no make-up and no one would ever know.
“Scriptwriters created the role of a posh British princess especially for her and were blown away by what a natural she was. Victoria enjoyed every minute and is keen to do more. Network bosses have been in touch since, offering more work – she really does have her pick of projects.”
– Variety reports that Tobin Bell will likely reprise his role as the voice of Jigsaw for an upcoming video game from Konami based on the Saw film franchise.
– Just Jared reports: “Beyoncé will make her voiceover debut in Nickelodeon’s Wow, Wow, Wubbzy, providing the voice for Shine, lead singer of a girl group.
– Just in case you missed the most recent trailer for Pixar/Disney’s Up (opening in theaters May 29th, 2009) you can view it on the official site. The voice cast includes Edward Asner, Jordan Nagai, Christopher Plummer, Paul Eiding, and John Ratzenberger.
– 20th Century Fox’s Ice Age 3: Dawn of the Dinosaurs is releasing July 4th 2009. Most of the main cast members from the previous films are reprising their roles: Ray Romano, Queen Latifah, Denis Leary, John Leguizamo, Josh Peck, Seann William Scott, and Chris Wedge. Joining the cast is Simon Pegg (Shaun of the Dead, Run Fatboy Run) and child actors Joey King and Atticus Shaffer.
– Disney’s live-action/talking animal family feature G-Force (definitely NOT to be confused with the classic anime series of the same name) opens July 24th, featuring the voices of Nicolas Cage (Speckles the mole), Penelope Cruz (Juarez the guinea pig), Sam Rockwell (Darwin), Tracy Morgan (Blaster the guinea pig), and Steve Buscemi (Bucky the hamster). Will Arnett, who does quite a bit of voice acting work, has a supporting live-action role in the film.
– 411 Mania has an op-ed on celebrity involvement in video games. Nothing new, but it’s interesting to see a gamer’s POV on the subject. (Just be advised that the article linked contains adult language.)
– Another op-ed piece on celebrity voice acting: When an Oscar talks, it sounds like these actors [TampaBay.com]
– The September 18th release of Cloudy With A Chance of Meatballs features the voices of SNL alums Bill Hader, Andy Samberg, and Tracy Morgan, as well as Anna Faris (The House Bunny, Scary Movie series), James Caan (The Godfather, Las Vegas), Bruce Campbell (Evil Dead series), and Mr. T (The A-Team). [While I may not always support celebrity voice casting, having Bruce Campbell and Mr. T voicing characters in the same movie is just so unbelievably full of win.]
– The February release of THQ’s Deadly Creatures for the Nintendo Wii features the voices of Dennis Hopper and Billy Bob Thornton.
– Yahoo Movies has a new trailer for the computer-animated feature film Astro Boy, due in theaters October 23, 2009. It features the voice talents of Freddie Highmore, Nicolas Cage [sensing a trend here? -Ed.], Kristen Bell, Nathan Lane, Matt Lucas, Eugene Levy, Donald Sutherland, and Bill Nighy.
– From a Nickelodeon press release for Glenn Martin, DDS, this summer’s first Nick-at-Nite animated series for adults:
A star-studded voice-over cast featuring Kevin Nealon (Weeds, Anger Management), Catherine O’Hara (For Your Consideration, Chicken Little) and Judy Greer (27 Dresses, Arrested Development) has been tapped for Nick at Nite’s upcoming stop-motion animated comedy, Glenn Martin, DDS set to premiere this Summer. The first television production to come from Michael Eisner’s Tornante Animation, Glenn Martin, DDS follows a beleaguered dentist and his family trading in the suburbs for life on the road. Crisscrossing the country, the Martins are beset by an array of colorful locals and crazy situations in locations ranging from Las Vegas to Amish Country. Many of the characters they encounter are voiced by enough instantly recognizable guest stars to fill a parking lot of RVs, including: Chrissie Hynde, Betty White, Gene Simmons, Wendie Malick and more.
Each of season one’s 20 episodes follows the life of Glenn Martin (Kevin Nealon), who yearns for a change of scenery and a deeper connection with his family. Determined to bring the family closer together, Glenn takes the Martins on a road trip to protest the destruction of a beloved childhood park. As things unravel right from the get-go, the family is forced to make the dental-mobile – replete with a giant decorative toothbrush on the roof – their new home. Glenn, Jackie and Courtney (Jackie Clarke) – an 11-year-old future corporate maven who brings along her personal assistant, Wendy (Judy Greer), a 14-year-old North Korean exile – and son, Conor (Peter Oldring), the 13-year-old hormone-addled tween who’s not exactly the sharpest tool in the shed–quickly learn when hitting the road that the road can sometimes hit back in unexpected ways. The Martins are accompanied on their journey by the family dog, Canine, who’s pronounced buttocks only add to the hilarity.
– The release date for Disney’s traditional, 2D animated musical, The Princess and the Frog, has been bumped up to December 11th, 2009. It includes the voice talents talents of Anika Noni Rose (Dreamgirls), Broadway singer Jennifer Cody, Keith David (Gargoyles), Jenifer Lewis (The PJs), John Goodman (The Emperor’s New Groove), Bruno Campos (Nip/Tuck), Oprah Winfrey, and VA fan favorite Jim Cummings.
– While watching VH1’s “Greatest One-Hit Wonders of the 80’s” this past week, I was very surprised to hear that musician Billy Vera (whose heart-wrenching ballad “At This Moment” was a #1 radio hit in 1986) has also had a successful career as a voice-over artist. A quick Google search later, and I recognized him as the image voice for a recent Burger King ad campaign via his demos on SBVTalentAgency.com.
– Although it’s not due in theaters until 2011, there’s already been a lot of buzz about the computer-animated action-adventure, The Adventures of Tintin: Secret of the Unicorn, which is being planned as a trilogy. Steven Spielberg is directing and John Williams is scoring the film. The cast appears to be made up entirely of Britains: Jamie Bell (Billy Elliot), Simon Pegg (Shaun of the Dead), Nick Frost (Shaun of the Dead), Daniel Craig (007: Quantum of Solace), Tony Curran (The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen), Andy Serkis (Lord of the Rings), Mackenzie Crook (Pirates of the Caribbean), and several others.
Previous reports: 3.31.2009 — Celebrity Voice Acting Round-Up (yee-hah.)
3.20.2009 — Forbes Ranks Animation’s A-List Actors
Posted by Craig Crumpton 
Voice Actors in the News 