What do you get when you combine monkeys, space, comedic greats and awesome animation? ROCKET MONKEYS! The new original series by Teletoon premieres today and features voice work by some of Canada’s best. The show follows brother Gus and Wally, two crazy monkeys who often find themselves in trouble during their space missions. The Magazine caught up with Seán Cullen (voice of Gus), Mark McKinney (voice of Lord Peel) and Mark Edwards (voice of Wally) to chat about the show! Check out what they had to say!
What was the inspiration for each of your characters?
Seán Cullen: I liken my guy to Charlton Heston. His voice is kind of heavy. He takes himself so seriously, it’s ridiculous.Mark Edwards: Gus thinks he’s serious and tries to be. My character, Wally, is just dumb.It’s like all the pairs from the 90s cartoons. Pinky and the Brain, Ren and Stimpy and even SpongeBob and Patrick.Mark McKinney: My character is any character that’s ever been frustrated. He’s the guy who snaps. He’s shaped like a banana, which is just a coincidence. He’s a human being, but for some reason came out looking like a banana. He meets the Rocket Monkeys and they try to eat him. He’s fed up with people thinking he’s a banana and becomes a super villain.
Do you record your parts together or separately?
Mark Edwards: Sean and I record together.Mark McKinney: I want to come in and record when you guys are in there because it sounds like fun!Seán Cullen: People have a misconception that everyone goes into the booth and reads their lines like a radio drama. But often times everyone records their parts separately. But There is an organicness of playing off each other that is really nice to capture. It’s rare now that you get to record with someone else.
What other misconceptions are there about the voice recording process?
Mark McKinney: Free water. And all the voice actors are always naked, you don’t want to hear the rustling of the clothing.Mark Edwards: A lot of people that I’ve spoke to think the animation is done first and that’s because a lot of them saw the first scene of Mrs. Doubtfire.Seán Cullen: Well, I think maybe it was that way before. I think back in those days they would voice the scenes afterwards. That would be brutal! That’s one of the biggest misconceptions. Also, that it’s fun and glamorous.
How do you guys get work done when you’re constantly joking with each other?
Mark McKinney: We put up a no joking banner. It shaves seven hours off the day!Mark Edwards: I don’t know if they record between takes, but Sean and I are always singing, rapping, insulting each other, beat-boxing or pretending to be other people.Seán Cullen: Yeah, it’s pretty fun! It’s why being an actor is such a great job. When you work with other people, that collaboration is really fun. That’s something a lot of other people don’t really get to enjoy.
Why should people watch ROCKET MONKEYS?
Mark McKinney: It’s funny and it’s good.Seán Cullen: It’s imaginative and fun!Mark Edwards: It’s ridiculous!
Thank you, Mark McKinney, Seán Cullen and Mark Edwards! Be sure to watch the ROCKET MONKEYS premiere tonight at 6:30 p.m. ET/PT on Teletoon!