We all love a good cartoon or an animated film, and often they stick with us for years after we have seen them and we remember them well in to our adulthood. What you often don’t think about though, especially as a child, is the actor behind the voice.

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We’re going to take a look at some famous characters in animated shows and movies and some very famous names behind them – you may be surprised by some of them, I know I was! How many of these did you know had voice these characters?…

1. Vin Diesel

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The action star who is the star of the Riddick and Fast and The Furious films, he has certainly made a name for himself in recent years. Did you know he was also the voice behind the titular character in The Iron Giant?

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2. Arsenio Hall

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The actor who starred alongside Eddie Murphy in Coming to America, he is a talented actor and comedian, but also a talented voice over artist as he provided the voice for Winston Zedmore in The Real Ghostbusters.

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3. Fergie

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Much better known as The Black Eyed Peas lead vocalist alongside Will I Am, did you know that Fergie also provided the voice of Sally Brown in several Peanuts specials?

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4. Orson Welles

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The legendary film maker who brought us Citizen Kane, largely regarded as one of the greatest movies of all time. He also provided the voice for Unicron in Transformers: The Movie!

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5. Leonard Nimoy

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Best known to several generations as Spock from Star Trek, and he really made that role his own. He had a very unique voice, though, and used it perfectly as Galvatron in Transformers: The Movie!

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6. Judd Nelson

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The bad boy from The Breakfast Club and famous face in the 80s thanks to The Brat Pack. Did you know that Judd Nelson was yet another famous voice in Transformers: The Movie as Hot Rod?

7. Meg Ryan

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The star of several romantic comedies throughout the 80s and 90s and the one who showed men everywhere that not all women are honest in the bedroom! She also provided the voice of Doctor Blight on Captain Planet and the Planeteers!

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8. James Avery

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Known much more widely as Uncle Phil from The Fresh Prince of Bel Air, but did you know that James Avery also played everyone’s favourite bad guy, Shredder, in Teenage Mutant Ninja (Hero) Turtles?

9. John Ritter

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One of those actors who turned up in loads of movies over the years before his sad death in 2003. John Ritter also provided the voice of Clifford The Big Red Dog in the series of the same name!

10. Jeff Goldblum

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One of the best and most popular character actors around, people love Jeff Goldblum! But did you know he used to lend his vocal talents to Captain Planet and the Planeteers as Verminous Skumm?

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11. LeVar Burton

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Geordi LaForge from Star Trek: The Next Generation (the one with the visor for any non-Trekkies!). Burton also had a role on Captain Planet and the Planteers as Kwame!

12. Mark Hamill

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Known as Luke Skywalker to a generation, and now known as Luke Skywalker to another generation thanks to the recently released sequels, but Mark Hamill has provided voice overs for the years in between and is incredibly talented, most widely known for his role as The Joker in Batman: The Animated Series.

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How many of these did you know, and how many are a complete surprise?

There are some on this list who certainly surprised us! Let us know all of your thoughts in the comments as always!