You're never too old for a Pixar movie, as favorites such as WALL-E and Inside Out have taught us. This being the case, there's no need to hide your excitement for the newest picture from the studio, titled The Good Dinosaur. This movie takes place in a world where dinos never went extinct, making it the the perfect setup for an unlikely friendship between a little dinosaur named Arlo and a caveboy named Spot. The characters' roles as pet and owner are humorously reversed, with Arlo being the more human character and Spot walking on all fours and communicating without the use of language. So since this wasn't a traditional speaking role, you probably won't be able to guess who voices Spot in The Good Dinosaur based on the movie alone. But who could blame you?
A little digging reveals that the mystery actor's name is Jack Bright, and he's as cute as the character he plays. Although he's a child actor, young Mr. Bright is also a Pixar alumnus, having voiced several background characters in 2013's Monsters University. He also provides the voice for Spot in the video game from Disney Infinity 3.0, which looks way cooler than any of the pixelated PC games that Disney had to offer back in my day (aka the '90s). So Bright is new to the scene, but he's joining a roster of some pretty huge talents at Pixar. Here are a few big names that you might not have guessed are also the voices of some of your favorite Pixar characters.
Hayden Panettiere
Long before she was the cheerleader on Heroes, the starlet played Dot in a A Bug's Life.
Alexander Gould
Turns out that the kid from Weeds was the voice of Nemo in Finding Nemo . Am I the only one who didn't know this?
Brad Garrett
The goofy brother from Everybody Loves Raymond actually has an impressive Pixar resume: he was the voice of Dim in A Bug's Life, Bloat in Finding Nemo, and Auguste Gusteau in Ratatouille.
Steve Buscemi
Fargo? Check. The Big Lebowski? Check. Monsters, Inc? Also check! Yep, the quirky actor played the creepy monster Randall (and also reprised his role for the prequel Monsters University).
John Goodman
Another Big Lebowski alum, Goodman voiced the lovable Sulley in Monsters, Inc and Monsters University.
Mindy Kaling
You may have known that Kaling was Disgust in Inside Out, but did you remember that she was also a character named Taffyta Muttonfudge in Wreck-It Ralph?
Wallace Shawn
Everyone's favorite character actor from The Princess Bride also voiced Rex in all the Toy Story movies, as well as the minor (but hilarious) character Gilbert Huph in The Incredibles.
Julia Louis-Dreyfus
You might not have known that Princess Atta in A Bug's Life was voiced by Elaine from Seinfeld. I didn't either, probably because when I was watching A Bug's Life I wasn't allowed to stay up late enough to watch Seinfeld. Too bad.
If Jack Bright follows in the footsteps of these Pixar veterans, he could end up becoming an A-lister. And if not, at least he had a role in what is sure to be a crazy cute film. Check out his talents as Spot in The Good Dinosaur, in theaters Nov. 25.
Image: Disney/Pixar
