[YT]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rWrh1axPj0M[/YT]
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rWrh1axPj0M
in case it doesn't load...
And his voice actor is the original Lion-O, Super-Sweet
Yeah I thought that was him.
EXCLUSIVE: 'ThunderCats' Lion-O And Panthro Voice Actors Revealed!
Posted 5 hrs ago by Rick Marshall in Hot Stuff, News
We've seen "ThunderCats" character designs, "ThunderCats" toys, and even a trailer for the upcoming reboot of the "ThunderCats" animated series, but one thing we haven't heard much about so far is the voice cast specifically, the actors voicing key players like Lion-O and his grizzled mentor, Panthro.
When MTV News spoke with "The Cleveland Show" cast member Kevin Michael Richardson during a recent Fox press event, the accomplished voice actor ran through a list of some of his upcoming projects and one particular title caught our ear: "ThunderCats." Asked about the project, the actor revealed that he's voicing the nunchuk-wielding veteran, Panthro, and dropped the name of the actor voicing Lion-O, too.
"I love Panthro, so to play him, yeah I'm very very happy," Richardson told MTV News. "The state of the art animation they have today is... That's exactly what it is state of the art."
It's worth noting up front that Richardson seemed a little uncertain of some elements related to the new "ThunderCats" series, as he mentions that the show will debut "next Fall" instead of its current 2011 premiere. So none of this is officially official until we get word from Warner Bros.
While he couldn't reveal the full cast of actors voicing characters in the series, he did drop one big casting note: the actor voicing Lion-O.
"The cast is fantastic," he said. "Will Friedle as Lion-O and some other people who I want to keep anonymous at the moment. It's up to the times, it's a lot cooler, it's going to move a little faster, and the special effects and the direction and the acting are just superb."
Probably best known to cartoon fans as the voice of "Batman Beyond" hero Terry McGinnis, actor Will Friedle rose to fame in the live-action television world on "Boy Meets World," playing elder brother Eric Matthews. Friedle also provided the voice of Jaime Reyes, a.k.a. Blue Beetle, on the animated series "Batman: The Brave and the Bold."
Of course, there's been no official word on the casting, so Richardson could be referring to another actor entirely but given Friedle's pre-existing connection with Warner Bros. projects, it makes sense that he'd be chosen for the role.
If everything goes through as indicated here, Richardson and Friedle will join original Lion-O voice actor Larry Kenney on the "ThunderCats" cast. Kenney previously revealed that he'll provide the voice for Lion-O and Tygra's father, Claudius.
In the end, Richardson admitted that even he was a little skeptical when plans were announced for a reboot of the beloved 1980s "ThunderCats" cartoon. The time he's spent on the project so far has erased those worries, though.
"I must tell you, I love the original, and if it ain't broke don't fix it," he said. "But from what I've worked on already, I'm very impressed."
"My favorite part is the 'Thunder... Thunder... THUNDER!" he said, mimicking the iconic "ThunderCats" call to arms.
Calls to Warner Bros. Animation and Will Friedle's reps for comment and/or confirmation were not returned at press time.
http://io9.com/#!5788440/first-thundercats-footage-features-sexier-cheetara-and-a-badder-thundertank
First Thundercats footage features sexier Cheetara and a badder Thundertank
Charlie Jane Anders — One of the most beloved 1980s cartoons is returning to television this year — but will the Cartoon Network's Thundercats reboot satisfy the rabid fans of the original? We watched a trailer and heard from the creators.
Spoilers ahead!
So between the brief trailer and the tons of concept art and stills they showed at the panel, we got a pretty good idea of how this new series will look. A lot of things have been amped up: Snarf is cuter, almost Pokemon-like. Lion-O is younger and a bit smaller (although he'll grow over the course of the series). Panthro, the big strong one, is a lot bigger and darker and has bigger spikes, to make him look more extreme. And
Cheetara "has gotten a boob job," as original Lion-O voice Larry Kenney joked.
Cheetara is "the original Thundercats ho," Kenney added. (Kenney will be voicing Lion-O's father Claudius, but not Lion-O.)
In the trailer, we see the idyllic land of Thundera — which is no longer its own world, but just a walled city-state on Third Earth. It's the days of peace and prosperity, but the voice-over warns us that the tribulations have been prophesized. And indeed, a whole army of lizard people come to attack Thundera, with huge mecha walkers and missiles and lasers, against the Thundercats' flaming arrows. The Thundercats promise to "fight like cats," but to no avail, as we see Thundera being destroyed. Cheetara joins the fight, with lots of awesome cat-fu, and Lion-O holds his sword aloft, with lots of lightning. "Go Thundercats Go!" we are exhorted.
Among other stuff, we also learned that the Thundertank will be more awesome this time around — and we glimpsed a picture of it. The Thundertank will have new parts, new missiles to fire, and motorcycles that come off the arms and separate.
Lion-O will have a big journey to become the bigger, tougher Lion-O we remember from the original cartoon — he'll age as it goes along, and face the same leadership challenge he faced in the original series, where the other members of the group fight him to prove he can lead. The world these characters will be exploring will be a lot darker and more dangerous, and the villains will be more hardcore, promised art director Dan Norton.
Snarf will be less annoying than in the original cartoon, the producers promised — he'll still say "Snarf" a lot, but also make a lot of animal noises. He'll be like R2D2 or Chewbacca, and Lion-O will understand what he's saying even if we don't. Also, the Thunderkittens will have tails, to emphasize that they're more like actual cats and less like feline-human hybrids.
There may be some shout-outs to Silverhawks or other old Rankin/Bass shows.
Also, the producers announced two new pieces of voice casting: Clancy Brown will be voicing Grune the Destroyer. And Robin Atkins-Downs will be voicing Mumm-Ra.
