Top 20 Male Characters Voiced By Women
#20: Joey Pogo
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“Bojack Horseman” (2014-20) It’s honestly kind of impressive that in a series with sentient, talking animals as main characters, a washed-up pop-star can still stand out. Of course, that’s to be expected when you have an Oscar-winning actress behind the voice. Joey’s dry delivery is basically a walking advertisement for Hilary Swank’s range. Yeah, that’s right, this is Hilary Swank. Not only is she a total vocal chameleon here, but her comedic timing is second to none. It doesn't matter whether the character is talking about mental health or trying to sleep with Pickles. Swank ensures that having Pogo around is always a good time.
#19: Prince Jeremy
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“He-Man & The Masters of the Universe” (1983-85) Apparently, voicework in this galaxy runs in the family. Both of Erika Scheimer’s parents were involved in the dubbing of this classic animated series. This led to the actress being brought in for small bit roles. Schemier’s most notable contribution came in the form of Prince Adam’s young cousin, Jeremy. Admittedly, he can come off as an absolute brat. But he does save He-Man at a pretty awesome moment. Thanks to Scheimer’s gravelly and nasally delivery, it’s fun to hate and occasionally cheer for Jeremy. While he may not be anyone’s favorite royal in this universe, his appearance is a great display of Scheimer’s talents.
#18: Monkey D. Luffy
“One Piece” (1999-) After the infamous failure of the original English dub, fans were hesitant about another actress taking a crack at this iconic role. Thankfully, Luffy docked with Colleen Clinkenbeard. The rest was smooth sailing. Her rough vocal texture and high-energy performance has made her the indisputable voice of the character in English. It’s downright staggering that Clinkenbeard has maintained the same quality of voicework across over 800 dubbed episodes. After all, Luffy has a penchant for lengthy power-up screams. Her clear love and passion for the character is enough to make anyone want to set sail with the Straw Hats.
#17: Spike
“My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic” (2010-19) While this lovable dragon is a bit, well, spiky, that doesn’t mean he lacks a tender heart beneath all the scales. Thanks to an impeccable performance by Cathy Weseluck, the rebellious reptile’s gruffer tendencies always come off as charming instead of eye-rolling. It’s definitely a difficult line to thread. Luckily, Weseluck makes it look easy. According to behind-the-scenes reports, the actress wasn’t the first choice for the role. But you wouldn’t be able to tell because she fits into the role so naturally. We’re glad Wesluck was able to figuratively and literally spread her wings as Spike throughout the series.
#16: Irwin
“The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy” (2001-07) One of the grimmest facts about this series is that Billy’s bespectacled best-friend doesn’t appear as often as we’d like. While the main trio has great comedic chemistry, Vanessa Marshall’s Irwin makes a strong case for why the group should be a constant quartet. A large reason why he stands out is because of all the humor Marshall imbues into every single line. She also has the pipes and range to portray Irwin when he’s going through very stressful scenarios. But even if she’s screaming as a young boy, it never sounds like she’s straining her voice. While we could go on about the technical and comedic merits of this performance forever, we’d recommend listening to one of Irwin’s many great lines yourself.
#15: Rocket J. Squirrel
“The Adventures of Rocky & Bullwinkle” Franchise (1959-) When these two zany animals debuted in 1959, few could have expected they’d continue to be popular for decades. And we bet almost no one could have foreseen that the same actress would inhabit Rocky for over fifty years. After working on the original show, June Foray appeared in games, made plenty of cameo appearances and took a leading role in the 2000 feature-film. She excelled at playing the naive and spunky squirrel for decades. It’s hard for an actor to play a role for that long, let alone do it as effortlessly as Foray does. To honor her long tenure in the role, a reboot honored her legacy by enlisting the equally incredible Tara Strong to continue on as Rocky.
#14: Kevin
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“Ed, Edd n Eddy” (1999-2008) While the trend of women voicing young boys is nothing new in the industry, it’s still surprising to hear that the show’s resident jerk Kevin was played by Kathleen Barr. Her voice disappears underneath the character's too-cool-for-school jock persona. We’re completely intimidated every time Kevin flares up at the main trio. And whenever he has to show his softer side or appear in more surreal plotlines, Barr’s also able to make nuanced adjustments to the character. Kevin easily stood out as one of the most amusing members of the “Ed, Edd n Eddy” ensemble. It’s pretty much a fact now that no one says “dork” better than Barr.
#13: Naruto Uzumaki
“Naruto” Franchise Maile Flanagan has been the voice behind the iconic Rasengan-using protagonist for over twenty years. And there’s no signs of her turning in the shinobi headband any time soon. After debuting as the anime icon in his original self-titled series, she continued onto two sequel shows. And that’s not even counting the games, movies, and specials that came in between. The scratchy tones she uses made for a legendary and instantly recognizable character. But the best part of her work is the sheer amount of emotion she puts into every line read. Just like Naruto himself, Flanagan never gives us anything less than her best
#12: Chip
“Chip'n Dale, Rescue Rangers” Franchise Although this chipmunk duo had a rotating door of voice talent early on, everything changed in 1989 when Tress MacNeille walked into the booth. Her authentic performance made Chip’s hijinks feel really earnest. And that’s no easy task for a ranger that gets into this much trouble. With MacNeille voicing Chip, she not only succeeded in swaying over many audience members but she’s secured her position as the de-facto voice for the character for decades. No matter if it’s a game, TV special, or quick cameo, MacNeille always captures Chip’s high energy spirit. Even when John Mulaney took over the role for the 2022 film, she returned for a cheeky easter-egg that paid homage to her career defining performance.
#11: Casper
“Casper the Friendly Ghost” Franchise (1945-) When you look back at Casper’s long and storied history in the media, it turns out that the friendly ghost has been played by slightly more actresses than actors. Acclaimed radio personality Cecil Roy voiced Casper during some of his very first appearances in the “Famous Studious” shorts. She was followed by a veritable army of amazing voice talent. Industry legends like Norma MacMillan, Julie McWhirter, and Ginny Tyler each brought Casper to life. It’s truly astonishing that Casper’s indisputable charm shone through each and every one of the actresses. They made what could’ve been a spooky character into a loveable pop culture staple.
#10: Jimmy Neutron
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“The Adventures of Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius” (2002-06) Jimmy Neutron first appeared in a 2001 film. It was successful enough that the following year, it aired as a cartoon series on Nickelodeon, running for three seasons (and giving us a few “Fairly Odd Parents” crossover specials) before it wrapped in 2006. With the help of his friends Sheen and Carl, Jimmy builds inventions and has screwball adventures. In both his film and TV iterations, the titular boy genius, who is always managing to accidentally cook up trouble, was voiced by Debi Derryberry. You don’t need to be as smart as Neutron to tell that casting the actress as the iconic genius was a no brainer.
#9: Ben Tennyson
Top 10 Male Characters Voiced by Women
“Ben 10” franchise (2005-) “Ben 10” tells the story of Ben Tennyson, a kid who, using his Omnitrix, can take the form of various aliens in order to fight evil. Fans of the show may be surprised to find that the young hero is voiced by none other than the immensely talented Tara Strong. She not only provides the voice of Ben at varying ages in the TV episodes and made-for-tv animated films, but a whole slew of other characters in the popular series as well.
#8: Huey Freeman
“The Boondocks” (2005-14) One of the main characters of the unapologetic and socially aware TV series “The Boondocks”, the politically astute and cynical Huey Freeman is wise beyond his years. However, this quick-witted, radical ten-year-old is, like many other male child characters, voiced by a lady. Four-time Emmy winner and one-time Oscar victor Regina King leant her vocal talents to not just Huey but also his street smart eight-year-old little brother Riley. She was able to successfully bring both characters to life despite their significantly different personalities. While Huey was relatively more calm and reserved, Riley could be a hyper wild card. King definitely made us believe two brothers were in the room every time she entered the booth.
#7: Bobby Hill
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“King of the Hill” (1997-2010) That boy ain’t right. The son of Hank and Peggy Hill, Bobby just wants to make people laugh and have a good time. Although not always the sharpest tool in the shed, and perhaps not everything his father would hope for in a son, his gentle and good-natured demeanor make it easy for him to win over friends. Voicing the drawling Arlen, Texas resident is Pamela Adlon – who is perhaps otherwise best known for providing the voice of tomboy Ashley Spinelli on the Saturday morning classic “Recess”. Come to think of it, when you know and listen for it... it’s pretty obvious.
#6: Tommy Pickles
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“Rugrats” franchise (1991-) Chronicling the adventures of a crew of toddlers on their various playdates, the titular Rugrats had a clear ring-leader from day one. The boldest and baldest of the core group is Tommy Pickles, and with his bravery and sense of adventure he leads them on all sorts of daring escapades – after all, a baby’s gotta do what a baby’s gotta do. Elizabeth Ann Guttman - or as she is professionally known E.G. Daily - is the voice of Tommy in the original runs of Rugrats and reprised the role for the spin-off “All Grown Up!” as an adolescent Tommy. Strong wasn’t the only one, either. Kath Soucie lent her adorable babble to both Phil and Lil Deville. Talk about seeing double.
#5: Ash Ketchum
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“Pokémon” (1997-) When Pokémon first arrived on the scene, no one could have anticipated how hugely popular, influential and game-changing the anime would be. In the original arc, audiences meet Ash Ketchum (Satoshi in the original Japanese language version), an ambitious boy with a single-minded goal: to become the greatest Pokémon-master in the world. Rika Matsumoto originally starred as the ambitious trainer in the anime. When the series arrived in the US, Veronica Taylor brought Ash’s determination and boundless energy to screen for the English dub. Actress Sarah Natochenny eventually took over the English role in 2006 and voiced Ash when he achieved his greatest victory. And we can’t forget to mention that Meowth has also been voiced by several amazing actresses.
#4: Goku
“Dragon Ball” Franchise (1986-) The Earth-born Saiyan Goku (aka Kakarot) is one of anime’s most beloved characters. He’s friendly, he’s a little goofy, and he’s wicked strong. While the English dub of “Dragon Ball Z” sees an adult Goku voiced by Sean Schemmel, the original Japanese voice of Son Goku – as well as almost all of the English dubs of the young Saiyan – are voiced by women. Actresses like Barbara Goodson and Saffron Henderson lent their voices to the English dub. However, Masako Nozawa deserves a ton of credit for providing the voice of young and adult Goku in the Japanese anime. By voicing the role for over 35 years and counting, she’s earned her place in several record books and anime history.
#3: Dexter
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“Dexter's Laboratory” (1996-2003) Ah, Cartoon Network, you gave the world some true gold. Dexter, the uniquely-accented boy genius at the heart of the show, is still a much beloved character to this day. The eight-year-old Brainiac would come up with incredible inventions and machines in his Lab daily – only to have them inevitably destroyed by his happy-go-lucky sister, Dee Dee. The iconic voice role was first played by the late great Christine Cavanaugh until her abrupt retirement from voice acting in 2001. Afterwards, the keys to the lab were handed over to Candi Milo. Both actresses made sure that every time Dexter said the word laboratory, we couldn't help but smile.
#2: Timmy Turner
“The Fairly OddParents” (2001-17) Timmy is just an average kid who no one understands. Fortunately, he’s got fairy god parents! But unlike Cinderella, his stick around and can do more than just turn vegetables into a sweet ride for a couple of hours. Of course, the show hinges on the old adage of “careful what you wish for” as even Timmy’s most innocent wishes tend to go awry. The pink-hatted, buck-toothed preteen is voiced by none other than Tara Strong, whose voice acting credentials are nearly as hefty as “Da Rules.” What made her role as Timmy a wish come true was how effortlessly she made a character who could be spacey and selfish feel incredibly endearing. Strong had us believing that this average kid was a spectacular and three dimensional character.
#1: Bart Simpson
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“The Simpsons” (1989-) The most iconic trouble-maker since Dennis the Menace, Bart Simpson has been skateboarding his way around Springfield and beyond for nearly three decades. The perpetual preteen as well as several other Springfield’s school kids, including Nelson Muntz and Ralph Wiggum) are voiced by the great Nancy Cartwright. It’s actually something of a trend in the show. Most of the young boys, including the likes of Milhouse, are voiced by women. However, Bart easily rises above them all as one of the most recognizable animated characters in history. He even has a dance dedicated to his character. We wonder how often Nancy Cartwright does the bartman in the voice over booth while she’s voicing this iconic kid.
