- Marvel actors reunite in movie
- Legendary voice from The Simpsons features
- Cameo from a former NFL star
The Electric State, Anthony and Joe Russo’s new sci-fi adventure, hit Netflix on 14 March. Adapted from Simon Stålenhag’s graphic novel of the same name, it follows Millie Bobby Brown’s Michelle as she searches for her lost brother in a post-apocalyptic world.
Read more: First reactions to Netflix’s The Electric State
Michelle is joined by her robot companion, Cosmo, and reluctantly teams up with Keats (Chris Pratt), a smuggler and black market dealer, as they journey across a ravaged United States. Keats has his own robot sidekick, the wise-cracking Herman.
Read more: Millie Bobby Brown says celebs donated tour looks
Along the way, the team encounter several other quirky robots that survived a war between humans and machines. Many of these characters are voiced by Hollywood A-listers, so if you find yourself wondering, ‘who is that?’ – we’ve got all the details for you.
Cosmo – Alan Tudyk
Legendary voice actor Alan Tudyk voices Cosmo, the playful yellow robot version of a cartoon character. Tudyk has voiced so many iconic characters across film, television, and video games. He voiced the rooster Heihei in Moana and Moana 2, and also featured in other Disney movies such as Frozen and Zootopia. He also lent his voice talents to droid K-2SO in Rogue One: A Star Wars Story and robot Sunny in I, Robot.
Herman – Anthony Mackie
Although it may not be immediately obvious due to the voice distortion, Anthony Mackie, Pratt’s fellow Marvel star, voices his sidekick robot, Herman. Mackie, who plays Sam Wilson, aka the new Captain America, was praised for his performance by Pratt, who said via Tudum, “Anthony Mackie voices Herman beautifully throughout the course of the film.” Pratt appeared alongside Mackie in Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame.
Mr. Peanut – Woody Harrelson
Oscar-nominated and Emmy-winning actor Woody Harrelson bring his distinctive voice to Mr. Peanut. The character is modelled on the Planters Peanuts mascot and is a mouthpiece for the good robots worldwide. Even through the robotic voice distortion, Harrelson’s signature laid back voice is unmistakable. Harrelson is best known for his roles in the Hunger Games franchise, Zombieland and of course as Woody Boyd in the tv show Cheers.
Pop Fly – Brian Cox
According to Netflix, Pop Fly is described as “the blustery elder statesman among the robots of Blue Sky Acres.” Blue Sky Acres is a sanctuary where robots seek refuge, and the baseball robot is voiced by Brian Cox. In addition to his Emmy-winning role as Logan Roy on HBO’s Succession, Cox is perhaps best known for his roles as Stryker in X2 and Hannibal Lecter in Manhunter. He is also a renowned Shakespearean theater actor.
Penny Pal – Jenny Slate
Penny Pal is an anxious mailbot who works for the United States Postal Service. She is voiced by Jenny Slate and her fans will likely recognize her distinctive voice right away. Slate has done a lot of voice acting, including Bob’s Burgers, Zootopia, and Despicable Me 3. She’s also starred in films including Gifted, It Ends With Us and Obvious Child. Slate also had a single-season run on Saturday Night Live in 2009.
Colonel Bradbury – Giancarlo Esposito
Giancarlo Esposito provides the voice (and face) of merciless robot bounty hunter Colonel Bradbury. He can track down any robot and dismantle them if they are breaking Treaty rules. Esposito became a household name as Gus Fring, the main antagonist in Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul. The Russo’s told Entertainment Weekly that The Russos told us that Esposito’s character was “fearsome robot fighter during the war who was responsible for running down a lot of rogue robots who were still at large after the war,” adding that his character has “a wonderful and surprising arc.”
Perplexo – Hank Azaria
Perplexo is a mechanical magician robot, voiced by Hank Azaria. The legendary voice actor is best known for voicing several iconic characters in The Simpsons that include Moe, Apu, Chief Wiggum, Comic Book Guy and criminal Snake Jailbird. You’d also recognize his face from an appearance in Friends as Phoebe Buffay’s love interest and the villainous Kahmunrah in Night at the Museum.
Clem – Jordan Black
Clem is a burger robot voiced by comedian Jordan Black. Clem scolds Chris Pratt’s character for talking about burritos in a burger joint before revealing that the restaurant is out of pretty much everything. Black has written for Saturday Night Live and starred in the Comedy Central show Halfway Home as Sebastian “C-Bass” Yates.
Blitz – Rob Gronkowski
Former NFL star Rob Gronkowski, aka Gronk makes a cameo appearance voicing Blitz. The robot has a single line. Gronk, in a thick New York accent says “Aw, jeez, people. Where the heck did they come from?” when Michelle and Keats first arrive at an abandoned mall.
