Jim Cummings’ Featherstone: Robin Williams knock-off?

Posted on June 9, 2011 by cultleader

Guys, the following really annoys me. From this interview Out On DVD, The Secret life of Gnomeo and Juliet Is Revealed — As Told by Its Director

Q: I swore whoever played the flamingo was channeling Robin Williams…

KA: No that was Jim Cummings, a really talented voice actor. He’s great. Jim improved a lot of his lines as well and helped us come up with the idea of this Cuban flamingo from Miami.

Q: Did you entertain getting Robin Williams for that? He sounds like Williams.

KA: We had tried a lot of different ideas and couldn’t quite grasp it. When Jim came in we tried several things, and it was his idea to try the Cuban accent; it worked.

How bad do you want to smack that interviewer? I’m OK with the first question though, as a journalist, 3 seconds with Google could have told him who played the flamingo.

But the second time? I just feel like he’s calling Jim’s Gnomeo character a Robin Williams knock-off. The director just told you it was Jim freaking Cummings, dude, not Robin Williams. Get over it.

But maybe I’m oversensitive. What you do you guys think?

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  • Teresa01

    It does tick me off too. How exactly does it sound like Robin Williams?! It DOESN’T. It sounds as much like Robin Williams as much as the Genie in Return of Jafar is. He’s obviously one of those people who see ‘normal’ voice actors as just celebrity wannabes. I hate people like that ¬_¬

  • http://www.hillarydepiano.com Hillary

    Well, at one point in the Aladdin cartoon show the Dan Castellaneta genie did a Darkwing Duck impression. Maybe that’s where this all started. Jim Cummings’ Featherstone sounds like Dan Castellaneta doing his impression of Robin Williams while also doing his impression of… wait for it… Jim Cummings!

    No? ;-)

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Karla-C-Simmons/1582248919 Karla C. Simmons

    I enjoy Robin Williams very much (Jim could’ve been compared to worse) but honestly? for how long he’s been doing voice acting, and for how many big name characters he’s done (not to mention the multitude of lesser known ones) he’s still a “whoever”? Jim Cummings is FAR more talented and payed many more dues than to be treated literally as a “no name” actor Robin Williams wannabe. The Interviewer needs to go back to school and learn how to prepare for an interview….learn the cast…don’t diss the stars.