There’s a ton of talent behind DreamWorks Animation’s upcoming release The Wild Robot, including writer-director Chris Sanders (Lilo & Stitch, How to Train Your Dragon) and stars Lupita Nyong’o and Pedro Pascal. But one of the supporting characters is voiced by an actor of particular interest to the San Diego Comic-Con crowd, which was thrilled to see Star Wars legend Mark Hamill as a surprise addition to the movie’s panel.
Hamill, of course, is also a storied voice-over actor in addition to his work in a galaxy far, far away (as well as other projects, like Mike Flanagan’s Netflix horror series The Fall of the House of Usher). And he brought his wide range of experiences to voicing Thorn, a grizzly bear, in the animated film adapted from Peter Brown’s illustrated novel. First, though, he explained what drew him to the project.
“When they asked me to consider being involved [with The Wild Robot], the first thing I did was order the book, and I was just knocked out,” Hamill said. “I thought, if they can capture just a small percentage of the effectiveness of this book—and I have to tell you, they just did a fantastic job. When I went in to do the voice session, they had footage. I thought, well, one of the great things was to look at the book, and they kept that.”
“But it’s just—you have to see it,” he said. “I feel like back in the day, when I was trying to describe Star Wars without people having seen it. [The Wild Robot] is emotional and it works on so many levels. The kids will love it, but everyone’s going to love it. I remember when my kids were small, [I’d] take them to see these movies [like] The Garbage Pail Kids Movie, [and you had to] keep your opinions to yourself [because the kids are] enjoying it. [But] this is one that the the whole family is just going to fall in love with.”
When it came to voicing Thorn, Hamill explained, “We always have to take a step back and say, what’s my function in the film, to make everything work? What function do I serve? And one of the aspects of the book and movie is that all these disparate animals are thrown into this situation where they have to restrain themselves. Obviously a bear is a predator, but they have to work for the greater good, so they peacefully coexist with the animals that that would ordinarily be their dinner.”
Thorn is just one of the creatures that Roz the robot (voiced by Nyong’o) encounters when she’s unexpectedly marooned on an island filled with a wilderness unlike anything she’s ever encountered. It’s a found-family story with plenty of sci-fi elements; it’s also a story where Pascal voices a crafty fox. The rest of the voice cast includes Catherine O’Hara as an opossum, Bill Nighy as a goose, Kit Connor as a gosling, Stephanie Hsu as a rival robot, and Matt Berry as a beaver. Ving Rhames is also in the cast.
The Wild Robot hits theaters September 27.
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