Top 20 Celebrity Performances In Video Games
These celebrities proved their talent in voicework through fantastic video game performances. Welcome to WatchMojo, and today, we’re looking at traditionally on-screen performers who also wowed us in video games.
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00:00 Who's gonna poke out our eyes this time?
00:03 Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we're counting down our picks
00:05 for the top 20 celebrity performances in video games.
00:08 You cannot be sleuths.
00:10 Come, Comrade General, a new world order awaits.
00:14 Number 20, Will Arnett, Tiny Tina's Wonderlands.
00:19 Wow, you guys got here fast.
00:21 We'll forever know Will Arnett
00:22 as the voice of BoJack Horseman,
00:24 and more recently, the new voice of Sweet Tooth
00:26 from Twisted Metal.
00:27 But in 2022, he played the malicious Dragon Lord,
00:30 the antagonist of Tiny Tina's Wonderlands.
00:32 Throughout your adventure, he'll berate and ridicule you
00:34 in some of the most ridiculous ways imaginable.
00:36 Does he hold a candle next to Handsome Jack?
00:38 No, but as the debut villain of the Wonderlands spin-off,
00:41 Arnett was fit for the role.
00:43 Look, if you want someone who can be a total jerk
00:45 in the most fun-loving way possible, Arnett is your man.
00:47 I was trying to save you, too.
00:49 Go ahead.
00:53 Number 19, Malcolm McDowell, Killzone 3.
00:55 Captain Narville, do you know who I am?
01:00 Malcolm McDowell has a storied history
01:02 of playing malevolent, posh, deranged geniuses.
01:05 Though many may know him for his role as Molag Bile
01:07 in The Elder Scrolls Online,
01:09 his best role was Jorhan Stowell in Killzone 3.
01:12 The way McDowell portrays Stowell
01:13 is somewhat frightening, thanks to his delivery.
01:15 There are many moments where Stowell's anger
01:17 is terrifying to hear,
01:18 and if you need any evidence of McDowell's skills,
01:20 well, just take a look at the speech Stowell gives
01:22 in the execution scene.
01:24 What planet do you think you're on?
01:27 This is a man who will double-cross anyone
01:29 who stands in his way,
01:30 and McDowell makes that trait known in every line.
01:33 And the death of his killers!
01:37 Number 18, Nicolas Cage, Dead by Daylight.
01:40 I hate this particular fog.
01:42 It's perhaps the strangest crossover
01:44 in the history of Dead by Daylight,
01:45 and it's also one of the best DLCs the game has seen.
01:48 In 2023, Nicolas Cage was added to DBD as a survivor,
01:52 and he came with a hilarious set of perks
01:53 that all revolved around screaming and dying.
01:55 On top of that, Cage did all his own voice work
01:57 with lines that match the tone
01:58 of the crazy movies he starred in,
02:00 many of which don't make any sense.
02:01 Regardless, the renowned actor has made his mark
02:04 across several horror movies, good and bad.
02:06 So having him added into DBD was a sight
02:08 none of us thought we would want.
02:09 Someone, please, help!
02:12 Number 17, Bruce Campbell, Broken Helix.
02:15 There are things I like about my job and things I don't.
02:17 I hope you had your beauty sleep private
02:20 because you need it!
02:22 What's the situation, sir?
02:23 In the realm of gaming,
02:24 Campbell is typically reprising his role
02:26 as Ash Williams from the Evil Dead franchise.
02:28 While many will remember him as the snarky narrator
02:30 in the Spider-Man games,
02:32 his first video game performance was the best
02:34 and most original in his career.
02:35 In this forgotten third-person shooter for PS1,
02:38 Campbell brings the campy attitude he's known for
02:40 as explosives expert Jake Burton.
02:42 From hurling insults at his comrades
02:44 to acting like the biggest man in the room,
02:45 Campbell is at the top of his game here.
02:47 We only wish more folks got to play this title
02:49 back in the day.
02:50 I will take one of these explosives
02:52 and shove it right up your...
02:54 I understand, sir.
02:55 Number 16, Christopher Lee, Kingdom Hearts II.
02:58 It's a device to reclaim Kingdom Hearts
03:01 and encode it as data.
03:03 Leonard Nimoy, Mark Hamill,
03:04 Jesse McCartney, Hayden Panettiere,
03:06 these are just some of the famous names
03:08 attached to Kingdom Hearts.
03:09 Hayley Joel Osment does an equally amazing job
03:11 as Sora throughout the franchise,
03:13 but Christopher Lee is Ansem the Wise.
03:15 Though his deep voice is a bit odd
03:16 to pair with the likes of Mickey Mouse,
03:18 he helps elevate the magic and mysticism
03:20 that lies within the Kingdom Hearts games.
03:22 On top of that, you can feel the internal struggle
03:24 he's constantly facing
03:26 in understanding the science behind hearts.
03:28 There's a level of frustration and inner turmoil
03:30 that is somewhat relatable.
03:31 We've said enough.
03:32 Number 15, John Goodman, Rage.
03:35 Damn, now we've both got a problem.
03:37 In a post-apocalyptic world like Rage,
03:41 it's important that you try to find someone
03:43 with an ounce of humanity left in them.
03:45 And what better way to welcome the player
03:46 than John Goodman?
03:47 The voice of Sully in Monsters, Inc.
03:49 offers a friendly face, albeit one that is sort of tired
03:52 of the wasteland's psychotic nature,
03:54 and Goodman's gruff tone conveys it perfectly.
03:56 Sure, his presence does take you out of the game at first,
03:59 but for the rest of the campaign,
04:00 you'll quickly accept his role as Dan Hager.
04:02 - I put a lot at risk to save you.
04:04 Not just my life, but the lives of everyone here.
04:09 - Number 14, Rami Malek, Until Dawn.
04:12 - Get time up if they just wiggle around.
04:14 - Gosh, dude.
04:15 Leave me a little wiggle room.
04:17 - Before we knew him as Freddie Mercury
04:19 in Bohemian Rhapsody or David Hill in Oppenheimer,
04:21 Rami Malek delivered a chilling performance
04:23 as Joshua Washington in Until Dawn.
04:26 Let's ignore the motion capture.
04:27 We know the facial expressions can be strange.
04:30 But Malek's did a tremendous job
04:31 at hiding Josh's shattered mentality
04:33 until the real spiral begins a few chapters in.
04:36 It helped make him seem like a more sympathetic character,
04:38 even though traumatizing your friends
04:39 in a fake slasher movie prank
04:41 is not how you handle the deaths of your sisters.
04:43 - I'm a healer, man!
04:46 I bring people together!
04:48 - Not like you assholes.
04:51 - Number 13, Nathan Fillion, Destiny Series.
04:54 - Zavala's doing the hero thing in the plaza.
04:56 - Me?
04:57 I've got a date with whoever's behind this.
04:59 It'll be a short date.
05:00 - For a time, you could consider Nathan Fillion
05:01 as the face of Destiny alongside Lance Reddick,
05:04 who played as Commander Zavala.
05:05 But Cade Six, Fillion's character,
05:07 has often served as the face of the franchise,
05:09 and rightfully so.
05:10 Fillion does a tremendous job at making Cade Six
05:13 likable and funny without it coming off as obnoxious.
05:15 And the delivery is just as captivating
05:17 in the rare instance where Cade Six is being more serious.
05:20 His absence after the Forsaken expansion has been noticeable
05:23 and much sadder than we initially anticipated.
05:25 - Ikora, if you tell me this is a practical joke,
05:28 well, it kills me to say it,
05:30 but I would be really impressed.
05:31 - Impressing you, Cade,
05:33 is the easiest thing I'll do all day.
05:34 - Number 12, Susan Sarandon, Dishonored.
05:37 - Is that you, my dear husband?
05:41 - My eyes aren't what they used to be.
05:44 - We would have never expected someone like Susan Sarandon
05:46 to pop up in a game like Dishonored,
05:48 and yet she fits it so well.
05:50 Sarandon plays Vera Mare, aka Granny Rags.
05:53 Sarandon brings a certain elegance to Granny
05:55 while effectively depicting how far her mind has gone.
05:58 Honestly, why would you refer to a bunch of street thugs
06:01 as suitors?
06:01 Regardless, Sarandon's character does not appear too much
06:04 after the first area in Dunwall,
06:06 but the rewards in her quests can go a long way
06:08 in your journey to bringing down the corrupt politicians.
06:10 - Now there was a clever man.
06:13 He's got all sorts of nasty rat guts
06:16 and disease in his laboratory.
06:18 - Number 11, Tim Curry, Command and Conquer Red Alert 3.
06:21 - With respect, General, you are wrong.
06:25 - We could have chosen many actors from this game,
06:27 notably George Takei or J.K. Simmons.
06:30 However, Tim Curry takes the top spot
06:31 for his performance as Premier Anatoly Cherdenko.
06:34 Despite Red Alert 3's absolutely ridiculous premise,
06:37 Curry manages to stay in character for every scene.
06:40 Well, every scene except for the space delivery
06:42 where he clearly cannot hold back his laughter.
06:44 It still kills us today and is perhaps the sole reason
06:46 why so many fondly remember Red Alert 3
06:48 out of any of the Command and Conquer games.
06:50 - And then we will crush them.
06:53 - Number 10, Andy Serkis, Enslaved Odyssey to the West.
06:57 - Okay.
06:57 Let's go.
07:01 - Serkis is already widely known
07:02 as one of the best motion capture performers
07:04 in entertainment.
07:05 This was especially evident when he played Monkey,
07:07 protagonist of Enslaved Odyssey to the West.
07:10 From cut scenes to gameplay,
07:11 you can tell that every part of Monkey's physicality
07:13 was created to reflect in his character.
07:15 For as weird as it may be to describe your hero
07:17 as a gruff hobo, Serkis and developer Ninja Theory
07:20 succeeded in conveying that.
07:22 And a special shout out to Lindsay Shaw
07:23 for her performance as Trip.
07:25 Her and Serkis had some exceptional chemistry.
07:27 - What do you mean?
07:29 - Oh, I've seen it all before.
07:31 Scattered tribes coming together under one visionary leader.
07:35 It's never long before.
07:36 - Number nine, Patrick Stewart,
07:38 The Elder Scrolls IV Oblivion.
07:39 - For 65 years, I've ruled as Tamriel's emperor.
07:43 But for all these years,
07:46 I've never been the ruler of my own dreams.
07:49 - Casting Patrick Stewart in your game,
07:51 you know you'll get a golden voice for your character.
07:53 Heck, Oblivion already had quite the cast
07:55 between Terrence Stamp, Linda Carter, and Sean Bean.
07:58 But Stewart as the emperor of Tamriel,
08:00 the way he narrates the intro really helps set the mood
08:02 for some fantasy role-playing.
08:04 Sure, the facial animation hasn't aged particularly well,
08:07 but Stewart manages to carry his lines with such majesty
08:10 that it doesn't matter what parts of Oblivion don't hold up.
08:12 He truly brings the magic.
08:14 - In this, I am blessed to see the hour of my death.
08:18 - Number eight, Ray Liotta, Grand Theft Auto Vice City.
08:20 - Look, Sonny, we were set up.
08:22 The deal was an ambush.
08:24 Harry and Lee are dead.
08:24 - You better be kidding me, Tommy.
08:26 - Before his passing in 2022,
08:27 Ray Liotta gave countless memorable performances
08:30 across film.
08:31 But in the world of video games,
08:32 he's known for playing Tommy Vercetti,
08:34 Vice City's protagonist
08:35 and the first voice protagonist in the series.
08:37 Not only does he deliver his lines well,
08:39 the way he had to was a tough process.
08:42 Liotta had to watch footage of actors blocking his scenes
08:44 and use that as a gauge of how lines should be delivered
08:46 and how cut scenes were gonna look, roughly.
08:49 It's an arduous process that rock stars somewhat evolved from
08:51 and what came out of Liotta from such a weird process
08:54 was truly impressive.
08:55 - He's just got a touch of agoraphobia.
08:59 - Excellent, excellent. And you?
09:01 - I just want my merchandise.
09:02 - Number seven, Jack Black, Brutal Legend.
09:05 - I can fix anything except that.
09:09 - Now, one could say that Eddie Riggs
09:10 is just Jack Black being Jack Black.
09:12 Thing is, it is part of what makes Eddie Riggs resonate
09:14 with so many of us.
09:15 Black's energetic personality shines
09:17 the second he steps foot into the brutal land,
09:19 a stark contrast to the disgruntled Eddie
09:21 had we seen just moments prior.
09:23 Whether he needs to be serious, sad, funny,
09:25 or the life of the party,
09:26 Jack Black gives it his all as Eddie Riggs.
09:28 And it's why Brutal Legend has resonated
09:30 with so many players to this day.
09:32 - Oh, wow, great.
09:34 So you want to help me fight demons and stuff?
09:36 - Number six, Ron Perlman, Fallout series.
09:39 - Blood has been spilled in the name of everything,
09:41 from God to justice to simple psychotic rage.
09:46 - Ron Perlman may not have had as big of a role in Fallout
09:49 as, say, Felicia Day or Matthew Perry.
09:51 Yes, we know he voiced Butch Harris in the first game.
09:54 However, his performance as the narrator
09:55 is the most iconic in the series.
09:57 We all know the intro to every Fallout game
09:59 with his delivery.
10:00 - War.
10:01 War never changes.
10:03 - Despite Fallout's goofy nature,
10:05 Perlman excels at showing the franchise's more dramatic side
10:08 as he gives you backstory for your character
10:10 and the region you'll be exploring.
10:11 It's a chilling narration that has helped solidify
10:13 the series' identity for decades.
10:15 - They returned with tales of a city untouched
10:18 by the warheads that had scorched the rest of the world.
10:21 - Number five, Lance Reddick, Horizon series.
10:23 - You can trust. - Trust?
10:25 - Yes, trust.
10:28 - Many will know Reddick for his performance in Destiny 2,
10:30 but we're giving him a spot here
10:31 for silence in the Horizon games.
10:33 The way Reddick says his lines
10:35 brings out the mysterious side of silence.
10:37 You simply never know what might be going on in his head,
10:39 what he's planning, or what his motives are.
10:41 All you can conclude from him
10:42 is that he's cold, calculating, and beyond cunning.
10:45 It's such a shame that with Reddick passing in March 2023,
10:48 the future of one of PlayStation's best villains
10:50 is looking a bit rocky in terms of finding someone
10:52 to fill such big shoes.
10:54 Rest in peace, Lance.
10:55 - What hope does this primitive tribal earth have?
10:57 If you brought Gaia, you wouldn't be abandoning life,
11:03 you'd be saving a seed for a new world.
11:05 - Number four, J.K. Simmons, Baldur's Gate 3.
11:08 - Sickly, in a word, useless.
11:13 - J.K. Simmons has already made his mark
11:15 in the world of video games.
11:16 Cave Johnson in Portal 2,
11:18 the President in Command & Conquer 3 Red Alert,
11:20 and now General Ketherick Thorm in Baldur's Gate 3.
11:23 It isn't often that we've gotten to see Simmons
11:25 in a role that isn't comedic or heroic in some way.
11:27 Here, Simmons plays a man whose mind becomes so warped
11:30 following his family's death that he begins raising the debt,
11:33 trying to resurrect them by any means necessary.
11:35 Simmons manages to strike that delicate balance
11:37 of being intimidating,
11:38 but still as delicate as the rest of humanity.
11:41 This is a man who feels dead inside
11:43 and will do anything to get his happy life back,
11:45 even if it means he is the bad guy.
11:46 Yet another reason in a list of many
11:48 to pick up Baldur's Gate 3.
11:50 - But the Moon Maiden did not intervene
11:53 when my life was dismantled piece by piece.
11:58 - Number three, Samuel L. Jackson,
12:00 Grand Theft Auto San Andreas.
12:02 - You haven't forgotten about us, have you, boy?
12:04 - Hell no, Officer Tenpenny.
12:05 - If it were up to us, we'd put Sam Jackson
12:07 in almost every video game we could.
12:09 Officer Tenpenny, though his only unique role
12:11 in video game voice acting, is widely regarded
12:13 as one of the best performances ever in a video game.
12:16 Tenpenny is such a snarky jackass
12:17 that you immediately start to hate him as he berates CJ.
12:20 He's aware of the power he has
12:21 and will happily abuse it to make CJ's life miserable.
12:24 To convey these aspects of the character,
12:26 Jackson used his charisma as a weapon in his performance,
12:29 making Officer Tenpenny one of the most memorable villains
12:31 in gaming.
12:32 - No, no, not tonight.
12:34 - What you catching, a plane?
12:36 - Ding, ding, ding, ding, ding!
12:37 Good answer, Carl!
12:39 - Number two, Steven Merchant, Portal 2.
12:41 - You're good, actually.
12:42 Are you okay?
12:43 Are you, don't answer that.
12:45 I'm absolutely sure you're fine.
12:46 There's plenty of time for you to recover.
12:47 - Though Steven Merchant is perhaps
12:49 the least famous celebrity on this list,
12:51 it's impossible to ignore his performance
12:52 as Wheatley in Portal 2.
12:54 Merchant effectively portrays Wheatley's idiocy
12:56 with flying colors thanks to his line delivery
12:59 and ability to act like he knows what he's doing.
13:01 What's more shocking is when Wheatley turns against you.
13:03 While Merchant still brings the laughs,
13:05 he does bring out Wheatley's egotistical side brilliantly.
13:08 He becomes antagonistic, self-absorbed, and menacing.
13:10 To this day, we can still hear him calling for us
13:13 from the depths of space.
13:14 It almost makes us feel bad for the way it ends for him.
13:16 - Oh no, no, no, no, no, no!
13:18 Oh no, no, no, no, no!
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13:35 Number one, Keith David, Halo 2.
13:38 - It fled as we set fire to their planet.
13:41 - There's no questioning it.
13:42 Keith David gave us the performance of a lifetime
13:44 way back in 2004.
13:46 The Arbiter is one of the most memorable characters
13:48 in the Halo franchise because of David.
13:51 This is a soldier who bears tremendous guilt
13:53 over letting down his kind
13:54 and is questioning everything in his life,
13:56 his purpose, his religion.
13:57 Every line spoken is weighted by an exhausted remorse
14:00 that paints not just him,
14:01 but the Covenant in a different light.
14:03 If there's ever a game you should play solely
14:05 because of a fantastic performance from a voice actor,
14:08 it's Halo 2.
14:09 There's simply no other character
14:10 Keith David could have played perfectly.
14:12 - Secret icon critical to the great journey.
14:15 I must find it.
14:17 - Which celebrity do you feel gave a marvelous performance
14:19 in a video game?
14:20 Did they make our list?
14:21 Let us know down in the comments
14:22 and be sure to subscribe to WatchMojo
14:24 for more great videos every day.
14:26 - Oh man, don't tell me I've been slaying hot girls
14:29 this whole time.
14:29 - Did you enjoy this video?
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