Jack Black admitted that moving away from Pixar The Incredibles remains the biggest “what if” of his acting career, revealing that he turned down the opportunity to voice the film’s villain and immediately regretted it once the film hit screens.
Speaking in an interview with Capital FM, the comedian and actor reflected on why he said no and why he still questions the decision today.
Black shared that he was initially offered the role of Syndrome, the ambitious antagonist who became one of Pixar’s most memorable villains.
At the time, however, he was unsure about the project and did not know director Brad Bird.
“I was offered, and I regret it, saying no… I was offered Syndrome in this fantastic film The Incredibles, in fact, one of my all-time favorites,” Black said.
He explained that his hesitation was due to creative doubts and a lack of confidence in the director’s background.
“And I said no because I was like, ‘Uh, Brad Bird? I’ve never heard of him!'” Black recalled, adding that he felt the character needed more depth.
He admitted to requesting changes, saying, “‘This character you’re giving me is like a villain, but he’s a little one-dimensional. I’m interested but I’d like to see a rewrite. Are you going to add some dimensions to this character?’ And he said, ‘Yeah, you’re done.’
When the film was finally released, Black said the reality hit him hard.
“I learned a valuable lesson because when this movie came out, it was one of the best movies ever made,” he said.
“I was like, ‘Why was I so difficult?’ »
The role ultimately went to Jason Lee, and The Incredibles It went on to win the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature Film and became one of Pixar’s most famous films.
Its sequel, Incredibles 2arrived in 2018 and grossed $1.2 billion worldwide, with a third film currently in development.
Despite his regrets, Black has since built his own extremely successful voice acting career, finding a global audience as Po in Kung Fu Panda and Bowser in The Super Mario Bros. movie..
He will return as Bowser in Super Mario Galaxy movieis scheduled to arrive in theaters on April 3.
