From the recording booth to the spotlight! Join us as we celebrate talented voice actors who proved they could command the screen just as well as the microphone. These performers showed that their abilities extend far beyond animated characters, bringing their signature charm to live-action roles.
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00:00You guys are not gonna believe this. There's some blue-blooded rich woman out there setting
00:03up professional film equipment like she's shooting a movie or something."
00:06Welcome to MissMojo, and today we're counting down our picks for film and
00:09TV roles that best displayed popular voice actors on camera chops.
00:13You tell him, Henry.
00:15Who's that guy? Merlin?
00:18Number 10. Andrew Rannells
00:20Girls. Though he may not be best known for his live-action work, that just confirmed
00:23Andrew Rannells as a renaissance man. He came up as a prolific voice actor,
00:27most notably in anime English dubs, and as the lead on Archie's Weird Mysteries.
00:31Big game tonight. Riverdale versus Springfield. What do you say?
00:36I say you're blocking the view.
00:37It was his Tony-nominated work on Broadway that proved that he was camera-ready.
00:42That big break came with the role of Elijah Krantz on the acclaimed HBO dramedy Girls.
00:47I've taken an exciting new position. I'm an assistant to a curator of dance.
00:53Oh, wow.
00:53It's unpaid, but it could very well lead to something.
00:57Rannells quickly became a fan-favorite guest star who rose to the main cast
01:00on his sharp humor and disciplined emotion. This was just the beginning
01:04of him stealing the spotlight on the screen,
01:06while being as active as ever in the theater and the recording booth.
01:10On the way here from the airport, two people asked me if I was Blake Lively's husband.
01:15Iowa is amazing!
01:16Number 9. June Faure
01:18Sabaka. Even after her breakout on the radio,
01:21June Faure became a movie and TV star sight unseen.
01:25Welcome to Hollywood, stranger.
01:27Well, that's better.
01:28We greet you with open hearts, darling. What would you like to buy?
01:32Buy? I thought you were greeting us with open hearts.
01:36She voiced a variety of characters on Rocky & Ballwinkle, The Flintstones, and so much more.
01:40She even hid behind extensive makeup and costuming when she finally went on camera for Sabaka.
01:46Worshippers of Sabaka, an unbeliever is among us. Akbar, tie him.
01:53Faure stars as Marku Ponjoy, high priestess of a hostile Indian cult
01:58targeted by a British general. Besides the obviously problematic premise,
02:02it's just a terrible B-movie.
02:04Faure was nevertheless singled out for her menacing presence behind the commanding voice.
02:08Despite her natural screen presence, though,
02:10she continued to do live-action almost exclusively off-screen.
02:14She, too, hated Sabaka, though its cult status is partly based on her performance.
02:19We should have the entire village of Jaipur at the feet of Sabaka.
02:25And we will bring them all in fear to grovel in the dirt,
02:30and bring us their rupees to make us rich.
02:338. Cree Summer, A Different World
02:36From Suzie Carmichael on Rugrats to Elmira Duff,
02:39Cree Summer has been a memorable voice in many people's childhoods.
02:44But she wasn't all that well-known when she won over families on the NBC sitcom A Different World.
03:03Freddie Brooks was introduced in Season 2 as a socially conscious college student
03:07with a crush on Dwayne Wayne.
03:13She wound up being a core cast member for the remaining five seasons,
03:21popularized by Summer's lively comedic chops and gradual growth.
03:25The Care Bears and Ewoks star was bound to become a recognizable face.
03:29Summer instead became a superstar in animation and video games,
03:32but has been seen on the likes of Better Things, Queen Sugar, and Abbott Elementary.
03:377. Auli'i Cravalho, Rise
03:39The day after she turned 16, Auli'i Cravalho became an instant sensation as the star of Moana.
03:45The first-time actress' singing talents and line delivery
03:48convinced Disney that she was a natural headliner.
03:59This was cemented by her screen debut on the NBC musical drama Rise.
04:04Cravalho highlights the ensemble cast as Lilette Suarez,
04:07a high school introvert juggling problems at home and the lead in a struggling drama club.
04:18This complicated role won the actress high praise, while the show itself was cancelled
04:22after one season over mixed reviews and dwindling ratings.
04:26Meanwhile, Cravalho headed up a range of projects on stage, screen, and voice recording.
04:30Disney clearly has more than just an ear for rising talent.
04:386. Tara Strong, Sabrina Goes to Rome
04:45Tara Strong is one of the most recognizable names in voice acting.
05:00Her unmarried years as Tara Sharandov are a lot more obscure.
05:04She still enjoyed bigger roles in animation than in live-action,
05:07until she worked her magic in the first ABC movie, Spun Off, from Sabrina the Teenage Witch.
05:27The Canadian-American Sharandov put on a British accent as Gwen, an accident-prone witch
05:32who rooms with Sabrina Spellman during a Roman holiday.
05:35It's an admittedly cheesy performance, made totally endearing by lively line
05:39delivery and physical comedy. Sharandov returned as Gwen in 1999's Sabrina Down Under,
05:54permanently putting a face to the many voices in millennial nostalgia. Not really the name, though.
06:005. Yuki Kaji, Kami Voice, The Voice Makes a Miracle
06:04Since the mid-2000s, Yuki Kaji has been one of the most respected voice actors in anime.
06:09He could teach a class on this stuff, and did just that in live-action debut
06:21Kami Voice, adapted the popular manga with Kaji in the role of voice acting lecturer,
06:26Shirai K. Yu. The low-budget picture was so conscious of this industry that the iconic
06:31Wataru Hateno also returned to the screen. But to have less experience in this format,
06:35Kaji carries the movie with boisterous charm. He has since made other live-action appearances,
06:48including as the lead in the 2020 series, Paipo. Kaji is still much more prolific
06:54in inspiring voice actors by example.
07:084. Seth MacFarlane, A Million Ways to Die in the West
07:18Family Guy and American Dad made Seth MacFarlane a major figure in adult animation. Of course,
07:23the comic crooner's recognizable face has appeared in a variety of small live-action roles.
07:28He finally took the lead by writing and directing himself in A Million Ways to Die in the West.
07:32Granted, the movie divided viewers with its awkward translation of
07:36MacFarlane's crude humor to a live-action format.
07:43He himself was considered miscast as a cynical sheepherder who becomes a hero,
07:48of sorts. But his reliable comedic delivery and expressiveness
07:52helped earn the Western yarn a cult following. The sci-fi dramedy The Orville and a prestige
07:56turn on The Loudest Voice have since settled MacFarlane as a versatile showman, even on camera.
08:153. Nancy Cartwright, Marion Rose White
08:18The hilarious Nancy Cartwright was a TV animation mainstay long before Bart Simpson
08:23made her an icon, but her versatility as a lead was first heard in live-action.
08:32Loosely based on a true story, Marion Rose White follows a socially awkward woman who
08:37spends years campaigning for her release from a psychiatric institution. The CBS movie was
08:42well-received at the time, especially for Cartwright's natural balance of heartfelt
08:45tragedy and dignity. From this dramatic breakout, she mostly just scored bigger voice roles
09:06and a handful of live-action appearances. Marion Rose White may have also fallen into some obscurity,
09:12but it's worth watching to recognize the extent of Cartwright's acting talent across genres and
09:16formats. 2. Hank Azaria, Herman's Head
09:27There were some small live-action appearances before Hank Azaria's many roles on The Simpsons
09:32launched a versatile vocalist with numerous accolades to show for his stellar career,
09:36but Herman's Head proved he's a show-stealer entirely.
09:42As the ladies' man Jane Nichols, Azaria led the Fox sitcom's supporting cast with
09:51self-aware charm and flexible comedic chops. Though Herman's Head has faded into obscurity
09:56since its three-season run, Azaria soon scored unforgettable live-action spots on hit shows
10:01and in a variety of movies. He's been honored for The Birdcage, a dramatic tenure on Ray Donovan,
10:11and the tragic comedy Brockmire. Herman's Head may not immediately spring in fans' minds,
10:16but it was the humble beginning of Azaria's stardom on camera as well as off.
10:421. Tom Kenny, The Edge
10:45Several generations have grown up with Tom Kenny's flexible voice. He was in fact an edgier
10:49comedian before he led such beloved kids' cartoons as SpongeBob SquarePants. Indeed,
10:54the Fox sketch comedy show The Edge confirmed his versatility. Kenny appeared in front of the
11:05camera in a variety of hilarious roles. It was about this time that he broke into family-friendly
11:10animation as Heather Wolfe on Rocco's Modern Life. One might say that he found his voice
11:14in another format after The Edge was cancelled after one season. Still, Kenny has had his share
11:27of memorable live-action turns since a breakout stint on HBO's Mr. Show. This truly speaks to
11:32our favorite voice actors' range, even in the flesh. What are your favorite roles that took
11:43your favorite voice actors out of the recording booth? Lend your voice in the comments.
11:57Do you agree with our picks? Check out this other recent clip from Ms. Mojo,
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