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“When people stop me in the street, they usually start with ‘Hey…did we go to school together?'”, says Mitchell Whitfield, who most of you would probably recognize from his iconic roles as Barry the Orthodontist from “Friends” and as Stan Rothenstein in “My Cousin Vinny”.
But what many film-goers may not realize is that Mitchell Whitfield has recently forayed into the art of voice acting, playing characters such as Donatello in the “TMNT” feature and, most recently, the Autobot Fixit in “Transformers Robots In Disguise: A New Autobot Mission”.
Mitchell was kind enough to give us some of his time recently to have a chat about his role in “Transformers” as well as some of the highlights of his career to date and to come…
Why did you decide to take on Transformers Robots In Disguise: A New Autobot Mission?
How could I not! So many of us grew up watching various versions of Transformers on television and in film; so the idea of actually getting to BE an Autobot seemed too good to be true. It’s just one of those iconic franchises that everyone dreams of being a part of; so when the opportunity to play Fixit on Robots in Disguise came around, it was kind of a no-brainer.
How does voice acting compare to screen acting? Which do you prefer?
Wow…you’re going to make me pick, huh? They’re both incredibly challenging and rewarding for different reasons. Performing on camera is more physically demanding and a more time consuming process for everyone involved; actors also have the luxury of being able to use facial expressions and body language to tell their story. In the world of voice acting, even though your character is brought to life beautifully by artists through animation, when you’re recording a script you’re telling the story entirely with your voice—it’s a different skill set. I also have to say that for an on-camera actor, doing voice work is incredibly liberating; we’re almost always judged by our appearance before we ever get to utter a single word at an audition—which means we’re usually limited by our gender, age, ethnicity, etc. The beautiful thing about voice work is that if you can sound it, you can be it—I mean, look at me…I’m still playing 17 year olds!
The Transformers universe has expanded a lot in the last decade or so, largely due to the live-action films. Why do you think Transformers is so universally loved by such a wide audience?
Come on…they’re robots…in disguise…what’s not to love! I know for me personally, they tap into my basic love of futuristic technology and cars; but I think it’s the human attributes that the bots have…their sense of honor, as well as the basic “good vs. evil” storylines that people really relate to. And let’s not forget the transformations: the first time I saw footage of Robots in Disguise, there was this incredible transformation by Sideswipe that had me giggling like a schoolboy…
You’ve been involved in some really interesting, not to mention iconic, projects thus far in your career. Do any stand out to you as the most significant?
Hmm…there are definitely a few that hold a special place in my heart. The first co-starring role I had in a feature film was a movie called Dogfight that I did in 1990 for Warner Bros. It was a small movie, but I got to work alongside River Phoenix and Lily Taylor for 10 weeks, and it was a special experience. Playing Stan Rothenstein in My Cousin Vinny was a blast, as was being Barry the Orthodontist on Friends. In animation, getting to play Donatello in the feature film TMNT was great fun, and of course, playing Fixit in Transformers: RID is one of the rare jobs that I’ve become attached to on a personal level—I’ve made friends here that I’ll have for the rest of my life.
Do you still get recognised from your roles in some of those really renowned projects such as My Cousin Vinny and Friends? If so, what’s it like still being recognised for those parts 20+ years later?
Yeah…I still get folks coming up to me, and it always makes me smile; when you work on some of these projects, you never imagine that people will be talking about them more than two decades later—and I’ve been incredibly lucky to have worked on a couple of these like Friends and My Cousin Vinny. But more times than not, when people stop me in the street, they usually start with “Hey…did we go to school together?” They know that they know me, but they’re just not sure from where. I think my kids get a big kick out of me being recognized…and they’re a pretty tough audience!
What’s next for you? Do you have any upcoming projects?
Along with Transformers, I’m also a regular on a show called Goldie and Bear on Disney Junior, and have recurring roles on Sophia the First and Doc McStuffins; I also have a weekly radio show that I co-host with Marc Aflalo on SiriusXM. Thankfully, I’m pretty busy…and very grateful to be working in an industry that not a lot of folks get to be a part of.
Thanks for chatting with us today Mitchell!
