Voice over actors don’t get enough recognition, considering their ability to bring characters to life simply through voice.
Voice over characters have been a part of film and television for as long as it’s been around. Although voice over characters have been such a large part of films and television, the people that provide the voices don’t receive near enough credit as they deserve. For example, can you name any actors who only do voice over characters? No? How about naming a character in any film that wouldn’t have the same effect upon the audience if it didn’t have the voice provided with it. Despite most voice over characters nowadays being voiced by huge stars they don’t receive any where near the recognition that their fellow cast mates do. Even though it is arguable that their roles are actually harder to fill and deliver, as they have to show every aspect of the characters emotion and feelings simply through a voice, whereas the fellow actors in the films have the use of facial/body language. These are some examples of characters who were brought to life with a voice.
For me, one of my favourite examples of this is Ultron in the film Avengers: Age of Ultron. Ultron is an artificial intelligence that Tony Star and Bruce Banner create in order to replace the Avengers team, by having an outer atmosphere defensive where if any extra-terrestrial treats do arise the defender would be able to match it and protect earth. This however didn’t go exactly to plan. Once Ultron was created and given life, he concluded that the Avengers themselves were a major factor in the Earth’s destruction, simply claiming them as “killers”. Essentially, Ultron wants to introduce an artificial biological imperative for the human race; an “evolve or die” moment. Ultron viewed the Avengers as both good and honourable; but he also saw them as a fatal flaw in the evolution of Humanity. With the only way of true world piece being the Avenger’s extinction. A villain with this amount of aggression and intelligence required a casting to fit, and with Ultron being a robot, it was down to the voice to create his personality and to decide how it was to be delivered. James Spader was cast to voice Ultron in this role, he does so with a constant elegance and calmness than deploys a certain persona to Ultron that makes him almost seem reasonable. This in fact makes him come across like he is even more in power and control. When you watch this film more than once you realise that the power of Spader’s voice isn’t simply giving Ultron a sound, but also a personality. He is a robot after all and the facial expressions are very limited and next to none, however with the simple addition of Spader’s voice you know how the AI is feeling, how he wants his message to come across and how he is to react next, adding so many layers to a character that could simply be two dimensional. Yet Spader received next to no credit for his performance, especially when compared to the likes of Robert Downey Jr. and Chris Evans.
The next example is a character that most of the planet will have heard of and seen. Darth Vader. During the Star Wars series so many names shone and rose to a level of star-dome of which arguably pathed their careers, resulting in who they are today. For example, Mark Hammill, Harrison Ford, Ewan McGregor, and Hayden Christiansen. Yet the actor who has had a role in more of the Star Wars films than any other actor is rarely even mentioned. This being James Earl Jones. Jones voiced Darth Vader in five Star Wars films in total. Three full length films (the original trilogy) and two five-minute parts in Episode III and Rogue One. The character of Darth Vader was originally Anakin Skywalker, a young Jedi padawan tipped to be the one who would bring balance to the universe and create everlasting peace. Anakin however was haunted by fear his entire life, the fear of losing those he loved most. To overcome his fear, Anakin was seduced by the dark side of the force and the false promises of Emperor Palpatine/Darth Sidious. This and severe injuries caused by a duel with Obi-Wan Kenobi resulted in the birth of Darth Vader. A dark lord and arguably the most powerful person in the universe. This character relied completely on his voice to display any form of emotion, thought and dialogue. The deep immense voice of James Earl Jones gave this character life. Creating a perfect balance of a robotic voice through a gas mask like helmet with the remaining hints of emotion within the minor tones. Simply with his voice, Jones delivers such a powerful presence and one that due to this character is known and recognised all throughout the world, yet still isn’t recognised with the praise to the level of his fellow cast mates.
The next example is quite possibly the greatest example of a voice over actor not getting the credit and worldwide recognition from people out of the field as they deserve. A man who was the backbone of so many people’s childhoods and their favourite televisions characters whilst growing up. Characters such as Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Porky Pig, and Roger Rabbit were all voiced by the same man, a man whom despite his colossus impact on the industry is hardly actually even known throughout the world. With his characters being house hold names, the name Mel Blanc is hardly even recognised unless you work in the industry. Mel Blanc, known as “The Man of a Thousand Voices” is regarded as one of the most prolific actors to ever work in Hollywood with over a thousand screen credits. He developed and performed nearly 400 distinct character voices with precision and a uniquely expressive vocal range. The legendary specialist from radio programs, television series, cartoon shorts and movies was rarely seen by his audience or even recognised, but his voice characterisations were famous around the world.
