Disney's problem with 2D Animation

[Brer Panther]

Second, they use a lot of regular voice actors. Ignoring for the moment Jim Cummings and Frank Welker, whose versatility puts them in a lot of films, recent Disney films have included such veterans voice actors as Keith David, Nicole Sullivan, Brad Garrett, Tom Kenney, Ron Perlman, and Maurice LaMarche, among others.

Frozen only had ONE professional voice actor in it (I'm not sure if Alan Tudyk counts or not), Maurice LaMarche. And he only had a few lines. Wreck-It Ralph, to be fair, had three: Jess Harnell, Maurice LaMarche, and John DiMaggio. But again, they weren't major characters.

I don't mind the casting of celebrities as the characters in Disney film. But there isn't really any need for it.

Also, what Disney movie had Nicole Sullivan in it?

 

[tcool]

Also, what Disney movie had Nicole Sullivan in it?

Buzz Lightyear of Star Command : The Adventure Begins & The TV Show for Mira Nova
Meet the Robinsons for Franny
Kim Possible & The Movie for Shego
Brandi & Mr Whiskers for Gerri

 

[Jahona]

I'm not sure if Alan Tudyk counts or not

Alan Tudyk would count as a Professional Voice Actor. While he his main focus might be live action, he has been doing voice over work for the past decade.

 

[Brer Panther]

I hope he's in Zootopia. And Moana. And Giants. And the film that comes after Frozen 2 ('cause I doubt the Duke would be back, unless he played some other character).

 

[Matt_Black]

I don't mind the casting of celebrities as the characters in Disney film. But there isn't really any need for it.

Well, in the case of Frozen with it's unabashed Broadway sensibilities, it makes sense they'd hire cast with Broadway experience.

As for celebrities, this isn't new. They hire whoever they think is best for the part, be they well-known or not. Peter Ustinov in Robin Hood, Bob Newhart in The Rescuers, John Hurt in the Black Cauldron, Vincent Price in The Great Mouse Detective, etc.

 

[Brer Panther]

Well, it admittedly ain't as bad as DreamWorks' casting. "Home" pretty much screams "If you ain't a celebrity, you ain't getting a
part in one of our movies" (seriously, Rihanna as a KID?!).

 

[Matt_Black]

Well, it admittedly ain't as bad as DreamWorks' casting. "Home" pretty much screams "If you ain't a celebrity, you ain't getting a
part in one of our movies" (seriously, Rihanna as a KID?!).

Yeah. The main difference between Disney/ Pixar and Dreamworks is that the former rarely makes the voice cast a part of their advertising (Wreck-It Ralph being a notable exception).

 

[imagineer boy]

Well, it admittedly ain't as bad as DreamWorks' casting. "Home" pretty much screams "If you ain't a celebrity, you ain't getting a
part in one of our movies" (seriously, Rihanna as a KID?!).

Yeah, DreamWorks is obnoxious as hell when it comes to this.

 

[Brer Panther]

Blue Sky, too. I like their movies, but there's no real need to cast a celebrity as EVERY SINGLE CHARACTER ("Robots" features people like Jay Leno and Al Roker as characters with only one line each. Again, not a bad movie, just a bit celebrity-overloaded)...

 

[Matt_Black]

You'll notice that Disney and Pixar use voice actors and character actors a lot more often. Ed Asner is a legend, but he's not what you'd call a marquee name to put butts in theater seats, and that didn't keep Up from being a success.

 

[Californian Elitist]

Well, it admittedly ain't as bad as DreamWorks' casting. "Home" pretty much screams "If you ain't a celebrity, you ain't getting a
part in one of our movies" (seriously, Rihanna as a KID?!).

Disney cast Seth Green as Milo in Mars Needs Moms, who was also a kid.

Does Disney not get big names for all of their films, too?

 

[Matt_Black]

Disney cast Seth Green as Milo in Mars Needs Moms, who was also a kid.

Does Disney not get big names for all of their films, too?

First, like Alan Tudyk, Seth has spent a lot of time doing voice work for over 15 years now. Second, I'm not sure that would count anyway as that wasn't even done by any of Disney's in-house animation studios (WDAS, Pixar, DisneyToon); I believe that was Robert Zemeckis' company and the film was distributed by Disney.

 

[Californian Elitist]

First, like Alan Tudyk, Seth has spent a lot of time doing voice work for over 15 years now. Second, I'm not sure that would count anyway as that wasn't even done by any of Disney's in-house animation studios (WDAS, Pixar, DisneyToon); I believe that was Robert Zemeckis' company and the film was distributed by Disney.

I don't see your point. And the film is considered a Disney movie.

Rihanna playing is child is no big deal. It doesn't affect the quality of the film's plot and it didn't stop people from seeing it.

 

[Brer Panther]

Rihanna playing is child is no big deal. It doesn't affect the quality of the film's plot and it didn't stop people from seeing it.

Thing is, she doesn't SOUND like one. Combined with the fact that she has a car, I didn't even know how old the character was supposed to be.

 

[Matt_Black]

Thing is, she doesn't SOUND like one. Combined with the fact that she has a car, I didn't even know how old the character was supposed to be.

She's a Highlander!

 

[Tony Perkis]

A big reason hand drawn animation seems to have lost the interest of the moviegoing public is, in my opinion, because there hasn't been a great hand drawn animated film (not included niche content overseas) in many years. Princess and the Frog, Pooh.....the best most high profile offerings, and neither were anything particularly special.

Simpsons being a huge success was because it was the film version of one of the most popular television shows of all time.

 

[Brer Panther]

Has anyone seen Nickelodeon's Barnyard? That has both celebrities (Kevin James, Sam Elliot) AND professional voice actors (Rob Paulsen, Cam Clarke) voicing its main characters. Why can't DreamWorks and recent Disney movies be like that?

 

[Matt_Black]

Has anyone seen Nickelodeon's Barnyard? That has both celebrities (Kevin James, Sam Elliot) AND professional voice actors (Rob Paulsen, Cam Clarke) voicing its main characters. Why can't DreamWorks and recent Disney movies be like that?

You mean like The Princess and the Frog (Oprah Winfrey, Keith David, Jim Cummings) or Tangled (Zachary Levi, Frank Welker)?

 

[Brer Panther]

By "recent", I meant post-2012 movies. But yes, "The Princess and the Frog" and "Tangled" qualify.

 

[Matt_Black]

By "recent", I meant post-2012 movies. But yes, "The Princess and the Frog" and "Tangled" qualify.

Well, with Frozen, while they weren't voice actors per se, I'd hardly qualify Idina Menzel, Josh Gad, or John Groff as big-name celebrities either.

With Big Hero 6, TJ Miller fills in that "voice actor" role with a good bit of experience under his belt. He's on Gravity Falls, and, if I'm not mistaken, he's the talking blob of snot in the Mucinex commercials. At the other end, the biggest name in the film was James Cromwell.