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But the script got its fat little butt off the ground and took flight.
BecauseBee Moviedoesnt care what humans think is impossible.
But youre here for theChallengers-esque love triangle, right?
The one between two humans and a bee?
Thats where Ken (Patrick Warburton) warbles in.
That bee is living my life, Ken screams in agony in the final scene.
When will this nightmare end!
I really do think its an honor.
Ya like jazz?I do like jazz.
Im doing a lot of things later in life now.
Next thing you know, I formed a garage band that had a jazz musician as a member.
That was an introduction for me.
I witnessed something that I had never seen.
Youre someone whos equally prolific in both voice and screen acting.
How does your decision-making differ between the two?
For storyboard artists, its a fun process because its a cumulative effort of so many people.
Whereas in live-action, its just you.
I can go through my IMDb page and be like, That was great.
That was shit.Bee Movieis great, of course.
But I look back and some of the choices Ive made throughout the years perplex me.
I see things a little differently now.
Im now, at the tender age of 59, perhaps a little more selective.
Ive somewhat survived and made a living in certain genres, but I love a good challenge.
I got three Best Actor awards for that one from different film festivals.
There are great performances in it, it just looks a bit crappy.
I had asked Rob Sitch, the director, You only knew me fromSeinfeld.
Al Burnett, the NASA scientist, is the least funny character in this entire film.
Why did you choose me?
And he responded, Well, I reckoned you could do it.
You had no idea what that little comment meant to me.
Because in Los Angeles, that just doesnt seem to be how their minds work.
They put you in a box.
They want you to do the same thing, but Ive always enjoyed seeing actors make turns.
One of my favorite films of all time isSling Blade.
But, no, hes a real actor.
Whether it be Joe inFamily Guyor Kronk inThe Emperors New Groove, you could tell its me.
Its the same guy, but he comes from a different place.
For instance, Kronks very sweet, but he could have been darker.
Thats a shame were going to miss dessert.
But I decided to make him a little bit sweeter, and that worked for him.
Now, Joe comes across a bit more officious.
Can you tell its the same guy?
you’ve got the option to.
There are voice-over artists who are just chameleons.
Their voice is up here, sometimes its down here.
But thats never really been me.
I absolutely saw it from the very beginning as a fun and clever idea.
I loved the story.
In the realm of cartoons, you dont play by the same rules.
You create a world and its absurd and silly and ridiculous.
And if the journeys fun and clever, its just like in live-action films.
It was never publicized greatly by Disney at the time.
Our film had a life, likeBee Movie, past its time in theaters.
It became more of a cult favorite than, say, a big initial screen presence.
Just like in live-action, you dont judge your character.
Its insane what Ken goes through.
But at the same time, you have to understand that its very reasonable for him his frustrations.
You let those frustrations rise, and within that theres the humor.
Hes getting so angry.
But from his perspective, its rightfully so.
Hes not happy about it.
Thats why he tries to actually smash Barry with anItalianVogue.
Thats one of my favorite lines in the film.
Its a lot of ads!
What were those sessions in the booth like?
Did you pick up on any of that subtext before its release?I certainly did.
Thats what makes animation fantastic and fun when it can be multigenerational.
It crosses bridges there.
It was really a lot of fun.
I remember thinking,This turned out rather nicely.
It was something that hadnt been done before.
I think one of the reasons whyBee Moviehas resonated is because its basicallySeinfeld.
What does that mean?
Its filled with perspective.
You cant just make somebody entirely an idiot.
Theres got to be something else there.
I could see what made Jerry think about me for the role of Ken.
Similarly,Seinfeldseems to have aged well.
They had ridiculous human arguments and situations that still seem to play very well today.
Thats a testament to Jerrys humor and his creativity.
Its not something that just works in, say, 1994 or 2007.
Its something that will have a life.
What he had created during that time was something that could, and did, live on.
That all belongs to Jerry.
Why does he keep recruiting you?
What mutual comedic understanding do you share?I appreciate whenever Jerry invites me to do things.
We get along well.
I love Jerry to death, and its kind of odd how our lives have intersected throughout the years.
They wouldnt let me out of my contract to make moreSeinfeldappearances.
He inquired if I would voice an animated Superman in one of the spots.
I said, Thatd be a blast.
Andwhile we were doing that,he pitched the ninth and final season ofSeinfeldto me.
He said, Can you come back on?
And I go, As it is, my schedule opened back up.
That just doesnt work for me.
Working with good people.
Thats my way of saying Jerry Seinfeld has been one of those throughout the years.
My family has become crazy birders.
We have all these different bird feeders outside our window where we have coffee in the morning.
We learned that if you put out different types of jellies, the orioles will come.
So all of a sudden, were finally getting these fantastic, brilliant, bright-yellow orioles.
It lasted for a while.
But now theyre not coming because we have a bit of a bee problem with the jelly.
The bees bother the orioles.
A swarm of bees keeps hitting the sticky stuff.
Its not the way Ken wouldve handled it, thats for sure.
