The announcement of Hulu’s upcoming Futurama revival has both excited fans of the Matt Groening cult sci-fi series and unearthed an ugly side of one of the medium’s most pivotal industries. Along with the announcement of the series second revival after two previous cancellations, it was revealed that most of the original voice cast behind the Planet Express crew was slated to return, including Billy West, Katey Sagal, Lauren Tom and Phil LaMarr. However, the most notable and disappointing exclusion from the cast for hardcore fans was that of John DiMaggio, the voice of the shiny-metal-assed automaton, Bender Bending Rodriguez.
A careered voice talent for nearly 30 years, DiMaggio has been a long-time advocate for the rights and equities of voice actors in the industry. DiMaggio’s refusal to return to the role he originated was out of, in his words, “self-respect”, as Hulu was not willing to negotiate higher pay for not just DiMaggio himself, but for all the returning voice talent. Whether lovable old Bender will be recast entirely pending any further negotiations, DiMaggio’s powerful range and talents as a voice actor are as distinct, varied and impeccable as a vocal artist can be.
From cutthroat villains to lovable heroes, here is a look at nine of John Dimaggio’s most iconic roles that have made him one of the top voice actors today.
General Grievous in Star Wars: Clone Wars
First impressions are very important, especially for a Star Wars villain. Before his prominent role in 2005’s Episode III: Revenge of the Sith, the Jedi-killing cyborg General Grievous first debuted in Genndy Tartakovsky’s Clone Wars micro-series. Even in only a couple lines of dialogue, DiMaggio originated the role with a chillingly calculated performance that made his murderous presence known to a surrounded band of ill-fated Jedi masters in the season finale. Although Grievous’ voice would be recast in the next season to better closely match Matthew Wood’s performance in the Revenge of the Sith for continuity’s sake, DiMaggio was the first and most effective in giving breath to the malice nature of the separatist droid general.
Rico in Madagascar
The unpredictable wild card of DreamWorks’ iconic flock of covert flightless birds, Rico is the monochromatic team’s demolitions expert and bottomless pit of tools. Voiced by DiMaggio in the Madagascar trilogy’s two sequels and The Penguins of Madagascar TV series, Rico’s dialogue mostly consists of gags, grunts and an occasional word maniacally screamed in excitement. Even in what can scarcely be described as even a few words, DiMaggio’s Rico is gutturally hilarious and bounces off the self-seriousness of the penguins’ espionage shenanigans.
Aquaman in Batman: The Brave and the Bold
2008’s Batman: The Brave and the Bold harkens the Caped Crusader and the rest of the DC Universe back to the silver age of comics, where fantastically absurdist tongue-in-cheek stories of rollicking heroism were in vogue. No character better illustrates the show’s traditionalist spirit than John DiMaggio’s turn as the King of Atlantis, Aquaman. Lying somewhere between the comedic machismo of Jason Mamoa and the melodramatic theatrics of a Shakespearian actor, Aquaman’s screen presence as a teller of romanticized legends and a stouthearted optimist perfectly balance Batman’s silently stoic nature thanks to DiMaggio’s kingly performance
The Scotsman in Samurai Jack
Samurai Jack follows the story of a noble soft-spoken warrior on a virtuous path to enlightenment. John DiMaggio’s the Scotsman is none of that. Boorish, loud and wielding a sword enchanted with Celtic magic, the Scotsman is the occasional partner in crime and best friend of the titular samurai. The greatest strength in DiMaggio’s performance as this highland he-man is its deceptive lack of subtlety. While DiMaggio renders the Scotsman with a constant stream unapologetic yells and a barrage of insults, the character still has a tinge of charm that makes him out to be likably identifiable and entertainingly human, especially coupled with the often Zen monotone of the main hero.
Dr. Drakken in Kim Possible
With the likes of Captain Hook, the Queen of Hearts and Hades, Disney’s greatest comedic villains have been able to mix childish insecurity and equally threatening intimidation. Dr. Drakken falls hilariously into this same league. John DiMaggio plays the blue-tinted super genius rival of Disney Channel’s teen hero Kim Possible. Drakken is the amalgamation of every comic book and spy movie villain archetype in the book. He’s vengeful, egomaniacal and bent on global conquest. While as classically evil as he is, he is also riotously insecure, constantly throwing tantrums in chagrin of his failed schemes. DiMaggio’s performance is able to meld a genre style villain with an egocentric comedic foil every episode often within the same moment.
Shnitzel in Chowder
The madcap Marzipan City of C.H. Greenblatt’s Chowder lives in a stylistically absurd mixed-media world all its own. It is in this food-based metropolis that a rock monster named Shnitzel only speaks in a single word. Speaking in a language solely composed of the word “radda”, the likability of Shnitzel's character is entirely rooted in DiMaggio’s performance. Despite the audience not hearing what lines Shnitzel is saying exactly through the flurry of nonsense words, DiMaggio’s soulful delivery strongly conveys the feeling of what his character means.
The Joker in Batman: Under the Red Hood
The Joker is about as iconic as comic book villains get with more than his share of iconic iterations across film, animation and video games. In 2010’s Batman: Under the Red Hood, DiMaggio takes his turn at playing the clown prince of crime to chilling results. DiMaggio renders this Joker with a deep timbre, operating in a lower vocal register than previous incarnations and making for a raspier, sharper and more intensely grounded performance than the maniacal flourishes of the past. DiMaggio’s is the most distinct and unique interpretations of the Dark Knight’s greatest foe.
Bender in Futurama
Planet Express’ resident beer-drinking, cigar-smoking bending unit, Bender is far and away John DiMaggio’s most iconic breakout role. Described by DiMaggio himself as a blend of an East coast drunkard, Blazing Saddles actor Slim Pickens and a college friend, Bender is Futurama’s most widely beloved and commonly quoted character. Despite his cold metal exterior, he is just as self-serving, havoc-wreaking and opportunistic as any human. In short, Bender is great!
Jake the Dog in Adventure Time
Jake the Dog from Cartoon Network’s mega-hit Adventure Time is not only DiMaggio’s most well-known and popular performance, it is the role he has inhabited the most. Playing Finn the Human’s adoptive magical canine brother, DiMaggio manifested his performance for Jake as “giving his natural voice a hug”. This makes Jake’s voice wholly Dimaggio’s own and a comfortably sincere performance that was consistently delightful across the series’ 10 season run. DiMaggio gives Jake a warmth of a best friend and older brother that feels natural and relatable amidst the show’s post-apocalyptic fantasy landscape. Even in the form of a magic dog, Jake is far and away DiMaggio’s most human performance.