This right here. Celebrity stunt voice casting is definitely a thing, but a lot of well known actors chosen to do voice roles are actually quite skilled at it, especially those names listed above.

The Transformers live action movies have been very stellar in their voice casting, because they wisely feature a combination of known actors with voice acting experience, like Nimoy, Goodman, and Weaving, and traditional career voice actors, like Peter Cullen and Jess Harnell. I've yet to dislike a vocal choice in the films.

 

What about Mark Ryan being chosen over Lance Henrikson?

 

I don't think it was a matter of choosing one or the other. Mark Ryan has been involved throughout the trilogy, they know what he is capable of as a voice actor. If they felt he could do the role justice, then that's why they gave it to him. I don't think it was some specific agenda not to give the role to Lance Henriksen.

Peter Cullen didn't voice Ironhide in these movies like in G1, and the character still turned out to be a fan favorite.

 

You're very right, but your focus is on movie actors doing voiceover work in a series/film. My focus is on voice actors from TV series appearing in a feature-length film (whether it be animated or live-action where the occasion demands it). I'm trying to say that TV voice actors could get more support, since as voice actors they could fit a character better than what a celebrity could achieve.

For example, STAR WARS had Frank Oz from THE MUPPET SHOW (Fozzie Bear, Miss Piggy) play Jedi Master Yoda. If Yoda was a new character for the upcoming SW7 they'd have cast someone like Terence Stamp or Ralph Fiennes as his voice ... which would be good, but no one has/could have done Yoda as well as Oz did. Oz was fortunate because George Lucas noticed and wanted him - other notable voice actors could have such a chance.

 

Exactly they earn more money with Bradley Cooper's name attached to it then Jon DiMaggio's. Though I do have to say I think Benedict Cumberbatch was perfect for the dragon celebrity or not

Crispin Freeman (Young Justice and more) talks about it in a Q&A on youtube. If I can find it again I shall post it.
But he talks about how celebrities take more time in a recording booth because they don't know how it's done and the synching up sometimes of lips and saying a line three times three different ways.

Also really watch Jon DiMaggio';s documentary "I Know That Voice" it's really good and I think kind of hints about this subject though doesn't go into much detail or length

 

That's only because the roles are made around them. A true voice actor have to works hard in order to become something completely different from himself. And to really make into the business they need to be capable of transforming into various kinds of completely different things. One day you need to be able to be a little pony the next you need to be a galactic dictator, the next again you need to be a living garbage can perhaps..

Celebrities are good because they are not required to do anything apart than pickin a script and read lines with their normal voices. If they were judged by the standards of real voice actors, they will hardly ever be casting. Chris Rock even laughed at voice actors claming their job is the easiest of the world but of course, even thought he has been casted to do voice acting, he never really experience a true voice actor job.

Frankly I don't like using celebrities for voice acting exactly because of this. Professional voice actors works hard all their life to perform into the business.. and then get casted out by people who most of them did not even did an audience for the part and don't have a fifth of their talent. The voice actress of Astro Boy was not even allowed to do an audience for the CGI movie.

And this is got even worse. Nowaday even animated series are mostly done by television or movie actors. Guys like Fred Tatasciore or Jim Cummings, despite their talents, only got to do "additional voices". Frankly that's a great injustice.

Again: because the roles were made around them. But the fact that Jim Cummings voiced some of Scar's lines and nobody noticed it before it was written on the internet, it's a proof to me that they could have hired Jim to voice the character for the whole movie and not much would have changed. The Lion King was loved (by me as well) because of the story and the lines, not because of the actors. And Cam Clarke, who voiced Simba in later appearances, did a great job as well (and unlike Matthew he could sing as well). So again: the movie would have not changed much if they hired regular voice actors instead of celebrities. Children do not even know who they were but they came anyway and the families who brought them as well. So it's both a waste of money and a waste of real voice actors talents as well

The mainstream audience for animated movies is made of children who don't even know who the celebrities are.

He's also hardly what I would call a celebrity. Sure he is not a professional voice actor but he's not even an international superstar.

 

I say that most people have no idea who voice actors are. They might recognize the voice but they don't know his/her name. Even in articles about Transformers movies, when Peter Cullen is mentioned, it usually also says he voiced the original Optimus Prime. Name some voice actors that are truly known to the general audience. I'm betting a VERY small number. Simpsons has been running for almost 30 years. Ask a random person on the street who voices Homer or Bart. Doubt many will know.

 

Looking at the new Christopher Robin trailer, one can never underestimate how awesome it is to hear a cartoon voice in a film adaptation. It was great to hear Jim Cummings as Pooh again, no matter who else could have taken the role.

 

Too bad he is not playing Tigger and Peter Cullen is not playong Eeyore. Again, celebrity over talent

 

Yeah, it pisses me off when companies would rather pay some big name to voice an animated character over actual voice actors. That is one of the reasons why Disney's dubs to the Miyazaki library sucks ass.

 

I'm sure someone else has already said but celebrities voicing cartoon movies is done purely based on the popularity of the actors name. They need a big name draw for the movie to make any money otherwise why go see it? I have been a big fan of voice actors for a while now and find it absurd that they don't get larger roles in animated movies. They are, with some exceptions, better than on screen actors, which I always thought you would want to have for a movie.

 

The logic of Hollywood producers is that Celebrities will sell movie tickets than a professional voice actor that no one's ever heard of. This is flawed logic since it's mostly kids who go to animated films in the first place and they don't really know the difference between the big name celebrity and the cheaper to afford but more talented and lesser known voice actor. Depending on their age they likely don't even realize there is an actor's voice behind that animated character at all.

The other reason this logic makes no sense is that in order for anyone to really care about the celebrity voice it has to be recognizable but if you're able to recognize who it is that means they suck at voice acting. The best voice actors are virtually unrecognizable, they can have conversations with themselves and convince the audience that there different people entirely. Some celebrities can actually do it well like Mark Hamill but if no one knows it's him it defeats the purpose of having a celebrity.

It should be that voice roles go to the best fit to play that character regardless of how well known they are but the producers who fund the big Hollywood blockbusters often over rule the casting director insisting on big name celebrities hoping their name will sell tickets. Not sure why this mind set still exists when they're pretty much the only people who actually care about a name more than actual talent.

 

There are three things that really drive me mad about this trope:
1) When professional voice actors are not even allowed to try. For example the original voice actress of Astro Boy was not allowed an audition for the CGI remake
2) When professional voice actors are lied to and used to perfect celebrities. For example Billy West was allowed to audiotioned for the role of Shrek but Mike Myers was to be casted from the beginning. They wanted Billy West' audition to give Myers an inspiration. The same thing happened with Jim Cummings and Rob Paulsen when they audiotioned for Timon and Pumbaa in The Lion King
3) When celebrities arrogantly claim that voice acting is easy job (Chris Rock). If they were judged with the standards of every other voice actor, few of them would be hired

 

There is an up side though. Some voice actors make good money by doing celebrity voices when the studio is too cheap to hire the real actor. Usually for ADR in films when they have to record dialog to replace the on set sound due to things like wind or in a TV series based on a movie they can't get the real actor's voice.

Chris Rock is a good example as I believe the guy who did Jazz in Animated is often hired as the cheaper Chris Rock. There's also a YouTuber who voices Darth Vader in all the video games and cartoons he's appeared in just cause James Earl Jones is costly to hire for low budget work like that... Also toys that happen to have a voice box such as the Darth Vader Death Star Transformer. I'm totally blanking on his name but you may know the parody series Chad Vader, same guy. There's a different dude in the suit as obviously the voice guy is too big to fit into it.

Jim Carrey was actually replaced by three different people for the animated versions of The Mask, Ace Ventura, and Dumb and Dumber. Plus since they originally had a different phone number in theaters before changing it due to the fact they used a real phone number instead of a 555 number, that likely isn't Jim's voice saying the number in Bruce Almighty but some cheaper voice actor hired specifically to replace the dialog. So probably four in total though not entirely sure if they actually replaced him for that last one.

The one thing that does suck is they often aren't credited in films and most people aren't even aware that it happens. It's hard to put something on your resume that hey I did this voice in this movie when you're not listed in the credits. I've had this happen to me when I was in Dial M for Murder. Theater never gave me credit so if you research it there's no evidence I was in the cast.

 

Emilio Estevez wasn’t credited in the 1st Mission Impossible movie.

Otherwise I see no difference between a screen actor or voice actor. They are both actors.

And I liked Steve Buschemi in Boss Baby so... pfffffttttt!!!!

 

It depends. I mean if the celebrity voice actors have a real knack of voice acting.
I'll put Shrek films in my list as far as celebrity voice actors.

There are some celebrity actors hired to voice act just to add "star power" in the film's billing.
But some of them can't really do it. Either they don't have the knack for it or can't blend with other co-voice actors.

Normal TV actors have something special that a celebrities don't have.
I'd say the mastery of what they do for living.
Guys like Kevin Conroy, Frank Welker, Mark Hamill aren't praised for nothing.

 

How about Internet voice actors? I know it's frowning thanks to the Machinma Transformers shows, but a Majority of them has gone Official.