Directors like Alfred Hitchcock are famous for making cameos in the films they direct. While it’s easy to spot these two prolific Hollywood legends, the same can’t be said for the directors who sneak their voices into their animated films. Animation allows for a certain level of anonymity for the voice actors, in fact, many popular voice actors are so unknown that they wouldn’t be spotted in public by the average moviegoer.
However, just like Tarantino and Hitchcock, animation directors from Dreamworks and more have chosen to cameo in their animated productions. Sometimes, these were a happy accident, while other times it was an intentional choice. These directors brought to life all kinds of characters including animals, aliens, and even cookies.
Brad Bird As Edna Mode
Brad Bird was the writer and director of several critically acclaimed animated features including Mr. Incredible and Elastigirl.
Originally Bird asked Lily Tomlin to play the character but when he demonstrated the voice he was looking for, Tomlin suggested that Bird do the voice himself.
Seth MacFarlane As Ted
Seth MacFarlane became famous for his animated series, Flash Gordon.
MacFarlane used a motion capture suit while acting out his scenes as Ted in order to adequately animate his gestures. During most of the production, Mark Wahlberg and other cast were forced to deliver their lines to a real stuffed teddy bear in order to properly create a line of sight and convincible interaction. Ted went on to become the fourth highest-grossing R-Rated film of all time and currently stands at number 11.
Rich Moore As Sour Bill & Zangief
In 2008, Walt Disney Animation Studios hired the talented Director, Rich Moore. Moore was responsible for both Ferris Bueller’s economics teacher.
Moore also voiced Zangief, the Russian wrestler from the Street Fighter II video game. Zangief is a member of the villain’s group along with Ralph. Moore reprises both roles in the film’s sequel as well as the sheep, Doug, and Larry in Zootopia. While Moore’s films have been praised for their world-building, it’s both his directing and voice acting that brought them to life.
Chris Wedge As Scrat
The Ice Age franchise centers around Manny the wooly mammoth, Sid the sloth, and Diego the saber-tooth tiger voiced by Ray Romano, John Leguizamo, and Denis Leary respectively. But one character to be in all 5 films as well as 6 shorts was Scrat, the unlucky saber-toothed squirrel who is always working to collect his acorns.
This cookey character was voiced by non other than Chris Wedge the sole director of the Ice Age franchise. While Scrat doesn’t have any traditional lines, his loud noises can often be heard reverberating off the glacier walls surrounding the characters. Wedge has voiced the character for over 18 years and in 2013 Scrat became the official mascot of Blue Sky Studios and like Illumination's Minions and Pixar's Lamp, is featured in their production logo.
Joe Ranft As Red
The Cars franchise centers around Lightning McQueen and the charismatic cars of Radiator Springs, the unique town along Route 66. However, there is one character who is a bit shier than the others; Red the fire truck. Red is mostly seen watering his flowers around the statue in the center of town. Red is voiced by the film’s co-director, Joe Ranft who the movie is dedicated to.
Ranft tragically died during the film’s production in 2005 when his car veered off the road. Unlike most directors on this list, Ranft only directed one film. As the “head of story,” Ranft also voiced a few other characters for Pixar including Heimlich the caterpillar (Finding Nemo).
Andrew Stanton As Crush
The 150-year-old sea turtle, Crush, wasn’t voiced by a surfer dude from California but instead by the Massachusetts born director, Andrew Stanton. Stanton was one of the first employees at Pixar and was involved in many of their original films including writing the first two Toy Story movies as well as A Bug’s Life which he co-directed.
He became the full director of Pixar’s fifth film, Finding Nemo where he not only voiced Crush but also the flock of seagulls who only shout the word: “Mine!” Stanton has been involved one way or another in all of Pixar’s work and went on to direct both Finding Dory.
Pete Doctor As CDA Agent 00002, Kevin, & Dad’s Anger
Pete Doctor ed Pixar the day after his college graduation and was their tenth employee. Like Stanton, Doctor has been involved in every Pixar film and directed Inside Out, even winning the Oscar for Best Animated Feature for the latter two.
Doctor also snuck his voice into all of his movies including CDA Agent 00002 who asks Sulley for an autograph for his daughter Bethany, Kevin the South American bird in Up, and “Anger” the mustached emotion inside of Riley’s Dad. Pete Doctor directed the recently released Soul, which is the first time he didn’t add his talented voice.
Chris Sanders As Stitch & Belt
Stitch a.k.a. Experiment 626 was an original character created by Chris Sanders in 1985 for an unsuccessful children’s book idea. It wasn’t until 1996 that the idea for a feature film on the character started development. Sanders went on to voice his beloved character for the original film as well as its three direct-to-video sequels.
He is even in talks to reprise his role in a The Croods for Dreamworks and this time voiced the charismatic Belt, Guy’s pet sloth as well as his literal belt.
Conrad Vernon As Gingy, Mason, & Insectosaurus
Dreamworks Animation legend, Conrad Vernon, co-directed several films for the studio including Madagascar 3: Europe’s Most Wanted and more. Vernon has over 50 voice acting credits to his name, many of which include voice work for his characters across, movies, tv shows, video games, and shorts.
His first major character was the Gingerbread Man a.k.a. Gingy in the The Jetsons for Warner Bros Animation Group.
Tom McGrath As Skipper
Along with Conrad Vernon, Tom McGrath directed all of the The Penguins of Madagascar spin-off.
McGrath ended up voicing the leader of the penguins, Skipper, after famed TV actor, Robert Stack ed away before production began. Vernon went on to direct other hits for Dreamworks Animation including The Boss Baby.
