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Danny DeVito has a pretty significant amount of voice acting experience on his filmography. The list includes Disney classics like Hercules, voicing the title character in a Dr. Seuss favorite, The Lorax, and also playing a dog named Rocks in a personal childhood obsession, Look Who’s Talking Now. Given the fact that I watched that 1993 release as a kid more times than I can count, I couldn’t help but connect the dots between that role and DeVito’s latest voice acting part, Bob in The One and Only Ivan.

The movie is about a gorilla named Ivan (voiced by Sam Rockwell) who winds up being the starring act of a shopping mall circus. At the start of the film, Ivan takes great pride in his ability to draw a crowd, but when a new animal arrives, a baby elephant named Ruby (voiced by Brooklynn Prince), Ivan starts to question if the mall is really the best home for him.

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Image via Disney+

Check out the video interview at the top of this article to hear about DeVito’s experience voicing Bob, a stray dog who befriends Ivan, and also what it was like working with Thea Sharrock who was directing voice performances for the very first time on Ivan. On top of that, DeVito also took a moment to address Colin Farrell scoring the role of The Penguin in Matt Reeve’s The Batman. Here’s what DeVito said when asked if he’s given his Dumbo co-star any advice on bringing Oswald Cobblepot to life on the big screen again:

“I haven’t spoken to him since, but I’m really looking forward to it. I think that no matter what, he’s gonna be great because he’s a great actor. The only thing he has to worry about is that Oswald Cobblepot will show up at his house … [DeVito gives a classic Penguin grunt.]” 

Catch DeVito in The Only and Only Ivan when it hits Disney+ on Friday, August 21st.

Danny DeVito:

  • Did DeVito think about Rocks from Look Who’s Talking Now while voicing Bob in The One and Only Ivan?
  • Having worked with so many accomplished animation directors, what was it like working with Sharrock who was directing voice performances for the very first time?
  • Has DeVito given Farrell any advice for playing The Penguin in The Batman?