Several Hollywood A-listers have and/or will be lending their distinct voices to multiple animated movies this year:
Academy Award-winner J.K. Simmons is soon to be seen alongside Susan Sarandon in the indie comedy “The Meddler” (in theaters Apr. 22). But we’ve already heard him in 2016’s two animated blockbusters. He voiced Mayor Lionheart in Disney’s “Zootopia” and the evil bull Kai in DreamWorks’ “Kung Fu Panda 3”. Co-director Alessandro Carloni told me he really enjoyed working with Simmons: “He can deliver on intimidation…and be hilarious.”
Add roles in Ben Affleck’s “The Accountant”, Mark Wahlberg’s Boston Marathon bombing drama “Patriots Day” and the musical “La La Land” (where he re-teams with “Whiplash” writer/director Damien Chazelle) and Simmons is already a strong candidate for The LCJ Movie Awards’ “Roger Ebert Actor of the Year” honor.
Idris Elba, who won the Best Supporting Actor SAG Award in January for “Beasts of No Nation”, can be heard in a trio of Disney movies – as Chief Bogo in “Zootopia”, the tiger Shere Khan in “The Jungle Book”, and as the sea lion, Fluke, in “Finding Dory”.
Pixar’s “Nemo” sequel also features the return of Albert Brooks as clownfish father, Marlin. Brooks can also be heard in “Despicable Me” studio Illumination Entertainment’s “The Secret Life of Pets” (opening just a few weeks later), and “The Little Prince”, which Paramount was originally going to distribute theatrically, but Netflix will now stream later this year.
And to top it all off – Matthew McConaughey voices main characters in both Laika’s stop-motion adventure “Kubo and the Two Strings” and Illumination’s animal music competition “Sing!”, which also features Scarlett Johansson, who also voices to slithering snake Kaa in “The Jungle Book”. Got that?
So, you think all of this is pretty crazy, right? I hear you. Now it’s up to you to hear them