There are several Vin Diesel roles, such as Riddick and Dom Toretto, that other actors should never try to recreate. On the other side of things is the CGI-animated Groot, who will have a new voice actor stepping up to the mic to growl out the now-iconic self-declaration. The prolific Kevin Michael Richardson is taking his umpteenth trip into the world of superheroes to voice Groot for Marvel’s upcoming Guardians of the Galaxy animated TV series.
Richardson is the first cast member added to the highly anticipated Disney XD series, taking on a character that is arguably the most popular of the bunch, despite being the most vocally inhibited. Disney released the news via Twitter, sharing the following video, in which you can hear Richardson deliver Groot’s signature line in person.
Damn straight, you’re Groot. The Guardians of the Galaxy series was announced at last year’s New York Comic Con (of all places) and really hasn’t kicked up a lot of space dust since then. There really isn’t too much known about what fans can expect to see, beyond intergalactic adventures involving Star-Lord, Drax, Gamora, Rocket Raccoon and, of course, Groot. We know it won’t tie in with the Guardians of the Galaxy film franchise, so not even the sky is the limit for where this series may go.
Here is a video of the test footage that was released whenever the series was announced, causing me to think we’re getting one of the coolest Marvel animated series ever created. I am Groot-timistic.
Richardson is quite familiar with the world of animated comic book superheroes, having gotten into the sub-genre in 1996 with a couple of parts on Superman: The Animated Series. He then went on to star in just about every animated series that followed, including The Batman, Batman: The Brave and the Bold, Wolverine and the X-Men, and The Spectacular Spider-Man. What’s more, this won’t even be the only time he’s voiced Groot, as he previously did so for Ultimate Spider-Man, Marvel’s Avengers Assemble, Hulk and the Agents of S.M.A.S.H. and the Disney Infinity Marvel Super Heroes video game. It would have been insulting to have anyone else take the part.
Disney is planning on announcing the rest of the Guardians of the Galaxy animated series cast as the week goes on. Here’s hoping someone from the film world reprises his or her role for the small screen. Dave Bautista, step right up.
