On Friday, Jan 23 legendary Blue Beetle Ted Kord, voiced by Wil Wheaton (Star Trek the Next Generation), will appear in an episode of Cartoon Network’s Batman: The Brave and the Bold.
We got a chance to speak with Wil about his work on “Fall of the Blue Beetle,” as well as geek out a little on comic books and memorable cartoons.
Now that you’ve transitioned to mostly Voice Over work, do you miss working in an ensemble cast?
W. Wheaton: I’ve been really fortunate in the voice acting that I’ve done. Every show I’ve worked on has been an ensemble cast. All the shows I do for Warner Feature Animation like Legion of Superheroes and Brave and the Bold are ensemble shows that we all get together to record. So, the camaraderie of being in a cast and the fun of getting to work together all at the same time is there in all of the shows that we do.
With your history working on DC Comics based cartoons, do you still have to audition?
W. Wheaton: The last time I auditioned for a role was when I auditioned for Aqua Lad.
I didn’t know this until last week. James Tucker and I were doing an interview together. And, James said that when he knew that they were doing Blue Beetle for Brave and the Bold and knew he was going to do Ted Kord – he said that after working with me as Cosmic Boy my voice was the first voice that came to his mind. It was an extraordinary compliment. It blew my mind when he said that. I didn’t know that all. It’s been a really wonderful really rewarding creative partnership working with the same people over and over again on these shows.
Are you a fan of comic books at all?
W. Wheaton: I’ve been a hard core “can’t wait for Wednesday guy” since the mid 80s. I really blame books like Watchmen and Sandman and the old Justice League for really making me one of those guys that’s going in every week to pick things up.
I’m a dad so there’s things I want to do with my kids. If the choice is spend time with my family or read comics it’s not a difficult choice to make.
I have thousands of books, tons of long boxes sitting in my garage. I have 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 shelves in my office that are all graphic novels and absolute editions. It’s been really exciting and fun to get to work in the animated versions of some of these things that I’ve loved for so many years.
So…. Brave and Bold Batman vs Frank Miller Batman – who would win?
W. Wheaton: (laugh) I don’t know that’s like asking which fruit will taste better an apple or an orange.
Are you also a fan of 70s/80s cartoons?
W. Wheaton: I remember getting up really early on Saturday mornings to watch the old Super Friends cartoons. It was really Challenge of the Super Friends and those old battles of the Legion of Doom that I loved. And I’m exactly the right age for GI Joe, Transformers, Thundercats and He-Man.
Thundarr the Barbarian is my favorite cartoon in history. That was before they were allowed to do marketing and merchandising in cartoons. So these guys were like, “let’s tell some cool stories.” And, they did.
If you had a chance to voice any animated remakes, would you have a preference?
W. Wheaton: Any of the soldiers in GI Joe would be really fun. That was a show that I absolutely love. It doesn’t age particularly well, but that’s ok. Some of the old Super Friends cartoons. Any of those guys from the Legion of Doom would be really fun to voice like Lex Luthor or someone like that.
You’re a Star Trek veteran. What’s your feeling on the upcoming Feature Film?
W. Wheaton: Cautiously Optimistic. We have to acknowledge we live in a post Phantom Menace world, whenever something is going to be rebooted or updated, or anything that has really mattered to us throughout our entire lives is going to have a new look. I think we are right to take a wait-and-see attitude. I’ve seen a little bit of the new Star Trek movie, nothing that everyone else hasn’t had the opportunity to see, reading the websites and looking at things online. So far from what I’ve seen it looks really really cool.
If my instincts are correct. They have created something that stays true to the ideals of Star Trek but is going to be relevant to a new generation of fans. It’s very similar to what James (Tucker) did with Brave and the Bold. It’s very true to Batman. The Batman mythology is still there. The stories are still the same. It is being approached from a different angle. James said that this is supposed to be more fun. It’s more of a silver age less serious kind of look at batman that’s a little more accessible for kids today. While the new Star Trek I think is going to be pretty relevant to my kids who are teenagers, Brave and the Bold is totally relevant and totally accessible to my nieces and nephews who are all in elementary school.
If you had a chance to get on a new live action sci-fi show, what would you look for in regards to setting, style…?
W. Wheaton: I find Distopian Post Apocalyptic futures to be really compelling and very rarely are they done well. They always kind of descend into parody. I like when they’re satire.
There’s an anthology of stories called Waste Lands that John Joseph Adams edited. It’s one of my favorite anthologies from last year. I’d love to take any of those stories and make them into films.
Would you consider directing or producing?
W. Wheaton: I don’t think so. I’m much happier to simply sit down at my word processor and write something. Or learn my lines create my character get to set and bring it to life.
You’re involved in so many things, what’s your passion these days?
W. Wheaton: Honestly, it’s spending as much time as I can with my family. My boys are getting older. My oldest son is in college, his brother is a senior in high school and is going to college next year. I am keenly aware how 24 hours in a day and 7 days in a week isn’t that much time. More important than anything else is providing for them financially and emotionally.
Any future writing projects?
W. Wheaton: There are two very big projects that I am very excited about that I can’t discuss in any detail at all. I am really looking forward to a year with a lot of really fun creative ventures I have.
Today, I am so overwhelmed with the inauguration its difficult for to me to think about much more than how great it feels to be proud of my president again. What do you want to do this year? I want to help put my country back together.
Thank you for your time.
W. Wheaton: Thanks a lot for talking to me. It’s wonderful to talk to you.
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“Fall of the Blue Beetle!” guest stars Star Trek: Next Generation Wil Wheaton as “Ted Kord / Silver Age Blue Beetle” and airs this Friday, January 23 on Cartoon Network at 8:00 PM.
“Fall of the Blue Beetle” Synopsis
Blue Beetle traces his legacy back to the original Blue Beetle, to learn why the Scarab has chosen him to share in it’s powers and become a super hero. The journey leads him to the dangerous Science Island where he battles legions of robots alongside Batman and learns the truth behind Ted Kord’s disappearance.
