I watched Over the Hedge last night, it’s been years since I’d seen this movie. Later on I started thinking, about how DreamWorks usually casts big name actors/actresses to voice their characters. When it was running through my head I was also considering how some of these movies then had shows created as well. I found it super impressive how these movies had actors and actresses that were well known. And it amazed me so much, I found it super impressive.
For their movies, they’ve had Anna Kendrick, Will Smith, Jack Black, Jerry Seinfield, David Schwimmer, Will Ferrell, Rihanna, Reese Witherspoon, it’s a long extensive list. Then I thought of one name, and I was like, well this is different. The name that left me boggled, that I said to myself, wait they aren’t as big a name.
Let me say first off, I am in no way trying to belittle him. Absolutely not, he’s one of my favorite actors. I merely want to outline how compared to the others that have voiced a character for DreamWorks Animation, he’s not as big a name. In fact it was after he voiced Hiccup Haddock for How to Train Your Dragon that he started to gain popularity. But of all the other VA’s for DreamWorks movies, they’re known for other roles. Not entirely because of that character they voiced.
As for Baruchel, I have to say that his role in DreamWorks was just utterly brilliant. To my knowledge, HTTYD was in the works since 2006, the movie released in 2010. There’s so much to the franchise, and Baruchel voiced his character for everything. All of the shorts, all eight seasons of DreamWorks Dragons, and let me tell you this, that’s one of the only voice roles he’s ever done. He voiced Hiccup for a decade, and the only other character he’s played was an inventor in the rebooted Magic School Bus. (Coincidentally also a brunette with green eyes)
But wow, it just boggles me. These other famous actors and actresses. I can guess what other roles were what brought them into the spotlight that they were then cast in DreamWorks movies. Of course I do know how it works where there are auditions and various of them, but most of the VA’s were already big names before being cast in a DreamWorks movie.
I even thought of the HTTYD cast. How compared to the rest of them, Baruchel wasn’t all the well known. America Ferrera (voiced Astrid), had already gained a name from Ugly Betty, Gerard Butler (voiced Stoick) starring in Phantom of the Opera, Kristen Wiig (voiced Ruffnut) having partook in Saturday Night Live.
Anyway, the point I am trying to make is that these big name actors aren’t mainly known for their role in a DreamWorks movie. Meanwhile Jay Baruchel is known well enough for his role in HTTYD. You look up Jonah Hill, you’re not going to see straight-out that he voiced Snotlout. Looking up Angelina Jolie you’re not going to immediately see that she voiced Tigress. But when you look up Jay Baruchel, in the literal first few sentences it says he’s known for voicing Hiccup Haddock in the HTTYD franchise.
They cast all these big names, for a great number of their movies, but there are a rare few where it’s names not so wide-spread.