"So we always ended up talking to ourselves. "Frank Welker, one of the great voice actors of all time, he'd do Megatron and like five other voices," said Cullen. Bay was stunned by the ask, not realizing that this is a pretty common practice for many voiceover artists. Realizing this could give him an advantage over everyone else, Cullen asked if he could read both sets of lines, alternating between Optimus Prime and Ironhide. "We looked at the script, and it said 'Ironhide.' I actually played Ironhide in the cartoon series as well." "When I first auditioned for Michael, a young gal was going to read the lines of the other character," Cullen said. Despite Cullen's history with the series, he still had to audition for the role of Optimus Prime like everyone else. Is it big like a tuba or small like a bugle? The voice, I think, will come from what it looks like," Cullen explained.In 2022, for the film's 15-year anniversary, Paramount held an event celebrating all things "Transformers," and Peter Cullen spoke (via Comic Book Resource) about his journey from voicing Optimus Prime in the animated series to bringing the character to life in live action. "Are they big? Are they small? Do they have a small neck? Do they have a big neck? Do they have a big belly? A small belly? I will relate that to, what would it sound like? Like a musical instrument. More broadly, when Cullen is developing a voice for a new character, the sketches have a big impact on how he approaches the voice. The voice actor has frequently spoken about how the actual voice of Optimus Prime was inspired by his brother, Larry, who was in the Marine Corps. "A father to many who don't have a father," Cullen said about the character. In terms of Optimus Prime, Cullen highlights that the character is a good example of "leadership, as well as "honour and courage" for children. It's a very rewarding life."Ĭullen also did some work with NASA, specifically the OPSPARC project, the Optimus Prime Spinoff Promotion and Research Challenge for elementary, middle and high school students. Peter Cullen is the voice of Optimus Prime in Transformers: Prime, and Toshiyuki Morikawa is the Japanese voice. "It's all very special to me when it involves kids and the effect that it has. "I like anything that has to do with helping children and helping youth," Cullen stressed. While there have been so many impressive roles and iconic voices for Cullen, being able to impact the lives of children is high on the voice actor's priority list when it comes to projects he's particularly excited to be a part of. (Stew Milne/AP Images for Hasbro, Inc.) 'I like anything that has to do with helping children' Peter Cullen, right, helps Frank Welker, the voice of Megatron, make handprints in Play-Doh compound at HASCON, the first-ever FANmily™ event from Hasbro, Inc. "We travel together to a lot to these conventions and I look forward to it, because it's just non-stop laughter. "Working with Frank, that was the beginning of a huge, huge ongoing career," Cullen said. Cullen still celebrates Welker's talent and creativity. Especially with Frank Welker."Ĭullen met Welker on 1979's Mighty Man and Yukk, and the pair have been friends ever since. "It was an opportunity to work with other actors and replenish that absence of performing. "I was a seven-day-a-week, in-front-of-a-microphone for years and it was a story of constant work, and then finally into cartoons, when the cartoons were massive. there was really no time for for acting in film or television," Cullen said. "In voiceover, it just took off with commercials and movie trailers, cartoons. From the National Theatre School of Canada and summer stock theatre in New York, he also did one-hour radio shows for CBC and television work for the public broadcaster, as well. "I look forward to it always."Ĭullen has an achieved an impressive career going back decades. "It is an opportunity to say thanks," Cullen told Yahoo Canada. (Photo by Theo Wargo/Getty Images)įew voice actors are as beloved as Montreal-born Peter Cullen, most famously known for voicing Optimus Prime in the Transformers franchise.Īs the 82-year-old makes his way to Toronto for Fan Expo Canada, Cullen said he feels "honoured" to continue to have the opportunity to meet fans - Canadians in particular - at fandom events. Peter Cullen attends Paramount's "Transformers: Rise Of The Beasts" premiere at Kings Theatre on Jin New York City.
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