Toad is one of the key characters in the Super Mario Bros. movie, and Keegan-Michael Key, who plays the character, has now explained how he found the voice for the role.
In a Fandango interview, Key explained how he was looking to “almost pretend I’m sucking on a helium balloon while I’m recording.” Here is what he shared:
“The director and I were working with my partner and acting coach at work and I was channeling a friend of mine and the way he sees the world and the way he sees things… We brought that to the director and then the voice was: we knew it would be higher in a higher register, so part of what I wanted to do was touch on the syntax, but almost pretend like I was sucking on a helium balloon during the recording . At least think about helium and try to get the sound a bit more like polishing the sound… and then I’d say, ‘Louder.’
…trying to go as high as you can while still having a certain level of comfort in your voice. … It was a really fun exploratory experience trying to find the right place and trying to get these beats into a place that felt like it was Toad, but at the same time kind of a new version of Toad. So that was the process.”
The full interview with the cast of The Super Mario Bros. Movie can be found below. In addition to Key, it also includes Chris Pratt (who plays Mario), Seth Rogen (Donkey Kong), Jack Black (Bowser), and Charlie Day (Luigi).
The movie Super Mario Bros. hits theaters on April 5, 2023. Check out the latest trailer released this week here.
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