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5/02/2012

DeVito Becomes the First Actor in an Animated Movie to Voice His Role in Multiple Languages

“ I am the Lorax. I speak for the trees. I speak for the trees, for the trees have no tongues. And I’m asking you, sir, at the top of my lungs.” —The Lorax in “The Lorax”

It is always a challenge to cast title characters across the globe in a way that preserves the integrity of both the animated character and the actor’s original performance. The incredible personality that DeVito brought to the Lorax in the English version was so compelling that the team wondered if he could capture that same brilliance in other languages as well.

DeVito was approached with the seemingly impossible task of voicing his character in four different languages. Despite the fact that he wasn’t fluent in any language beyond English, DeVito is always game for a challenge. He agreed to voice the character in Spanish, Italian, Russian and German. Against all odds, he nailed not only the local dialects but also the comedic timing in those languages.

Commends Renaud: “It’s an incredible challenge that Danny agreed to undertake, and he was committed to getting it perfect. He worked with a director from the local territories, as well as linguists. Speaking any language, it’s all about the nuances and the sounds. It’s not easy to get that exactly right, particularly across so many languages. I said that nobody but Danny DeVito could be the Lorax, and it is now true across the globe.”

Source: The Lorax Movie | Official Site for the The Lorax Film

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