Alan Tudyk has, for years, been the working man’s character actor. He’s pulled in performances from all sorts of mediums, voicing characters in animated series, and animated movies, he’s played side characters in comedies like “Dodgeball,” did a bang up job as a supporting character in the sitcom “Suburgatory” and is still going strong today, beginning his new show “Conman” and continuing to work on various modern hit films. Though you may not know he’s there, he’s been in many hit films, playing the Duke in the monster hit “Frozen,” the weasel in the monster hit “Zootopia,” and oh yes, he played one of more interesting rebel heroes in 2016’s “Rogue One,” yet another monster hit movie.
Here are five great performances from Tudyk’s large resume. If you haven’t seen these, be sure to give them a shot. If you have, check them out again, since Tudyk is scary talented and very funny.
5. Sonny – I, Robot
Say what you want about “I, Robot,” but one of the highlights of the film is the great turn by Tudyk who plays the humble and friendly robot Sonny, who may or may not have killed his master and broken the cardinal rule of his society. Tudyk’s personality shines through the performance allowing a more interesting humanity to Will Smith’s more raucous turn as the hero of the film.
4. Duke Weaselton – Zootopia
As Duke Weaselton, Alan Tudyk voices the boot legging weasel and criminal much in the vein of Steve Buscemi. In fact when I watched “Zootopia” I was very convinced Steve Buscemi had returned to Disney. Tudyk does a great job giving this character a sense of villainy making him, yes, sound like a weasely criminal. Most times when Tudyk voices animated characters, he almost never sounds like himself, which is quite impressive.
3. K2SO – Rogue One: A Star Wars Story
Tudyk used motion capture and stilts to portray the noble droid who helped in obtaining the plans to the Death Star. As K2SO, Gareth Edwards and co portray this droid less as cute like BB8 and more like a noble hero who has the best intentions to help his friends out. With Tudyk voicing, the droid grabs a lot of great moments, including smashing around storm troopers, arguing with fellow teammates, and even getting in to his very own blaster fight with armed imperial forces.
2. Tucker – Tucker and Dale vs. Evil
Tucker and Dale is one of the funniest movies in years, and easily one of the funniest horror comedies ever made. As the titular Tucker, he and his brother Dale are two well meaning Southerners that are mistaken for cliché horror movie rednecks after a horrible misunderstanding involve Katrina Bowden’s character and a swimming accident. Sadly Tucker and Dale happen to have also garnered a hunting cabin that belonged to a serial killer, adding to the hilarious misunderstandings that result in a lot of dead bodies, splatter, and Tucker having to help his brother fend off violent college students. Tudyk is a great mix of funny and sympathetic in the film, and I eagerly await the sequel.
1. Hoban “Wash” Washburne – Serenity/Firefly
Although Tudyk has amassed a large career of voice work and supporting work, he’s very well known for his work with Joss Whedon in the space western “Firefly.” He co-starred in the short lived series that lasted only one season, and became a huge cult classic, garnering a humongous fan base. Long after its cancellation, Tudyk is still a major icon to fans, known for playing the very skilled pilot of the space ship Serenity, who approached life with a great humor and hilarious sarcasm. Wash is such a great character he gets most of the memorable moments on “Firefly,” including the famous scene in the cockpit where he plays with dinosaur toys during a heist. Wash was always a source of great laughter and mockery, but when the time came to get serious, he was also a warrior to be reckoned with who also had a great passion for his crew and his wife Zoe. Tudyk’s work in the series and its movie are fantastic.