Is replacing real voice actors with celebrities ruining animated movies?
The trailer for the Mario movie reignited concerns over how Chris Pratt was chosen to voice the titular character instead of his longtime voice actor, Charles Martinet, who wasn’t even contacted in the first place about reprising his role.
Ever since the huge success of casting Robin Williams in Aladdin, animated studios have used celebrities as a marketing draw. While some celebrities have definitely put in the effort and created memorable characters that stand on their own, most of these performances feel like the actors phoning it in. Many films suffer from a celebrity’s presence taking importance over whatever character they are cast to play.
This isn’t helped by how trained voice actors have been facing many issues regarding pay and proper work treatment, while celebrities tend to get large paychecks for a few days of recording.
To get the best outcomes possible, it’s important to balance starring roles in animation between well-cast celebrities and regular voice actors who are trained in this field.