Famous actors who lent their voices to legendary cartoon characters

Maybe you know this, or maybe you had no idea, but so many actors have appeared on screen and later lent their voices to iconic cartoon characters from our childhood. Many of our beloved favorites have actually been brought to life by top-notch actors, probably without us even noticing; most notably in a number of Disney films such as A Kingdom for a Llama, Tarzan, Mulan, And The Hunchback of Notre Dame.

This might explain why so many contemporary animated films are so memorable. The voices behind the characters are provided by some truly multi-talented actors that we already love for their live-action work. For example, did you know that Demi Moore played Esmerelda in The Hunchback of Notre Dame? Or that Christian Bale Howl in the English dubbed version of Howl’s Moving Castle?

Seriously, there are so many cases. Luckily for you, we have identified more than 40 cases where this has happened.

Here is proof that famous actors are true chameleons and can make simple cartoon characters jump off the screen.

See below which famous actors lent their voices to the legendary cartoon characters.

Originally published July 2016. Updated July 2017.

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Demi Moore in “The Hunchback of Notre Dame”

Yes, Demi Moore lent her voice to the iconic Esmerelda in The Hunchback of Notre Dame, but the cabaret singer Heidi Mollenhauer gave her her singing voice in the film.

Kristen Wiig in “Despicable Me”

Wiig is the voice of Lucy in Dispicable Me 2 And 3. In the first part she was also Miss Hattie.

Christian Bale in “Howl’s Moving Castle”

That’s right, Christian Bale played our first crush Howl in the dubbed version of The moving castle. He actually signed for the film, for any role the director wanted after he saw Spirited Away.

John Lithgow in “Shrek”

John Lithgow voiced Lord Farquaad in Shrek.

Donny Osmond in “Mulan”

Donny Osmond was the singing voice of Shang.

Mel Gibson in “Pocahontas”

Who would have thought that Mel Gibson was John Smith in Pocahontas?! In fact, it was the first film in which he sang.

David Spade in “The Emperor’s New Groove”

David Spade was Emperor Kuzco.

Eartha Kitt in “The Emperor’s New Groove”

Eartha Kitt was Yzma. We were years old today when we found out.

Willem Dafoe in “Finding Nemo”

Willem Dafoe was Gill in Find Nemo.

Kathleen Turner in “Who Framed Roger Rabbit”

Did you know that Kathleen Turner lent her voice to Jessie Rabbit? In the ninth month of her pregnancy!

Billy Crystal in “Monsters Inc.”

Billy Crystal lent his voice to Mike Wazowski.

John Goodman in Monsters Inc.

John Goodman was Sullivan in Monster Inc. and he was also Pacha in A kingdom for a llama.

Steve Buscemi in Monsters Inc.

Steve Buscemi’s Randall in Monster Inc, which co-star John Goodman reportedly pushed for.

Jonathan Taylor Thomas in “The Lion King”

Yes, JTT was young Simba!

Matthew Broderick in “The Lion King”

The adult Simba? Yes, that was Sarah Jessica Parker’s husband, Matthew Broderick.

Scar was none other than Jeremy Irons.

Glenn Close in “Tarzan”

Glenn Close played Kala in Tarzan!

Minnie Driver in “Tarzan”

Minnie Driver was the voice of Jane in Tarzan.

Rosie O’Donnell in “Tarzan”

Yep, Terk is there Tarzan was Rosie O’Donnell.

Samuel L. Jackson in “The Incredibles”

Samuel L. Jackson was Lucious Best in The Incredibles.

Craig T. Nelson in “The Incredibles”

The Parenthood Patriarch voiced Mr. Incredible in The Incredibles.

Patton Oswalt in “Ratatouille”

Did you know that Patton Oswalt played the supporting character Remy in Ratatouille?

Mandy Moore in “Tangled”

Mandy Moore captured our hearts as Rapunzel in Tangled. According to Showbiz, Moore beat out Kristen Bell and Idina Menzel, who both auditioned for the role of Rapunzel.

David Schwimmer in “Madagascar”

David Schwimmer lent his voice to Melman in Madagascar.

Jada Pinkett Smith in “Madagascar”

Jada Pinkett-Smith is the Madagascar Hippo, Gloria.

Sacha Baron Cohen in “Madagascar”

Sacha Baron Cohen was this annoying character Julien in Madagascar.

Mila Kunis in “Family Guy”

family Guy is not a blockbuster, but it should be mentioned that Mila Kunis has been lending her voice to Meg Griffin since 1999, replacing Lacey Chabert.

Jennifer Tilly in “Family Guy”

Another iconic family Guy The character we have to mention is Jennifer Tilly’s character Bonnie Swanson.

Vincent Price in “The Great Mouse Detective”

Did you know that horror icon Vincent Price lent his voice to the villain Professor Ratigan? The Great Mouse Detective?

America Ferrera in “How to Train Your Dragon”

Did you know that Oscar-nominated actress America Ferrera played Astrid in the How to train your dragon Movies?

Bill Hader in “Inside Out”

That’s right, Bill Hader voiced Fear in the from the inside to the outside Movie.

Owen Wilson in “Cars”

We honestly forgot, but Owen Wilson played Lightning McQueen in carshis very first animated film.

Dakota Fanning in “Coraline”

Dakota Fanning voiced Coraline in the film Coralline. Apparently she had already signed her contract when the film was planned as a live-action film, but even when it was produced as an animated film, she was still enthusiastic about it.

Jennifer Lopez in “Antz”

Remember Ant? Do you remember Jennifer Lopez lent her voice to Azteca? Because we certainly did not.

Meg Ryan in “Anastasia”

Meg Ryan was an incredible Anastasia. While working on this film, Ryan reportedly began a romance with her co-star John Cusack, which lasted from 2002 to 2003.

Susan Sarandon in “James and the Giant Peach”

Susan Sarandon was in James and the Giant Peach, and played an iconic spider.

Oprah in “The Princess and the Frog”

Oprah played mother Eudora in The Princess and the Frog, although he was originally hired as a technical advisor.

Adam Sandler in “Hotel Transylvania”

Adam Sandler is the lead actor in Hotel Transylvaniaand played Dracula in all shows and films in the series.

Selena Gomez in “Hotel Transylvania”

And Selena Gomez repeatedly plays his daughter Mavis in Hotel TransylvaniaFun fact: Miley Cyrus was originally cast in the role, but after the penis-shaped cake fiasco, she was fired and replaced by Gomez, according to Comic Book.

Fergie in “Peanuts”

Fergie was the voice of Sally Brown.

Brittany Murphy in “King of the Hill”

The late Brittany Murphy voiced the cult character Luanne Platter in King of the Hilland we just had to mention it because so many people don’t know about it.

Jennifer Love Hewitt in “The Hunchback of Notre Dame II”

Okay, remember the The Hunchback of Notre Dame Continue reading Did you know that Jennifer Love Hewitt lent her voice to Quasimodo’s lover Madellaine?