The Penguins of Madagascar cartoon (check Nick.com for schedule) uses a cast of voices that sound deceptively just like the original actors who portrayed characters in the Madagascar movies. I marvel at how well the new cast has stepped into these roles, sounding enough like the original cast that I had to check the cast list of the Madagascar cartoon to see who was playing which character. I couldn't imagine Sacha Baron Cohen (King Julien) would have time for a Nick cartoon, and I was right. See who's tricking you with their talented voices in the Madagascar cartoon.
Tom McGrath
Paul Hawthorne / Getty Images
Tom McGrath (L) is the only cast member who is in both the Madagascar cartoon and movies. He plays Skipper, the leader of the penguin A-Team. Not surprising, since he was the director of both Madagascar movies. McGrath also provided voices for Gary in Shrek the Third and Wilson in Monsters vs. Aliens.
Sacha Baron Cohen
Stephen Lovekin / Getty Images
Most moviegoers know the face of Sacha Baron Cohen from his stint as Borat. TV watchers may remember him from Da Ali G Show. In the Madagascar movies, Sacha Baron Cohen plays my favorite character, King Julien, the delusional lemur.
Danny Jacobs
It's not surprising that Danny Jacobs plays King Julien in Penguins of Madagascar. He's a pro at imitating Sacha Baron Cohen, which he did in Epic Movie as Borat.Cedric the Entertainer
Stephen Shugerman / Getty Images
Cedric the Entertainer plays the second-in-command lemur, Maurice. His gravelly voice is well-known from his live-action stand-up routines and films, such as The Honeymooners.
Kevin Michael Richardson
Frazer Harrison / Getty Images
Kevin Michael Richardson imitates Maurice's rough voice in the Madagascar cartoon. He also played Principal Lewis in American Dad and Jabba the Hutt in Star Wars: The Clone Wars.
Andy Richter
Kevin Winter / Getty Images
Andy Richter is most well-known as Conan O'Brien's sidekick on his late night talk shows. Andy Richter also starred in his own comedy, Andy Richter Controls the Universe. Richter's voice is not recognizable as the subservient Mort in the Madagascar movies, so high-pitched and drawn out.
Matt Nolan
Actor Matt Nolan plays Mort the lemur in Penguins of Madagascar. You may also recognize his voice as Brad in American Dragon: Jake Long.Chris Miller
Chung Sung-Jun / Getty Images
Chris Miller, who plays Kowalski in the Madagascar movies, is most well-known as being the director of Shrek the Third. In those movies, he is also the voice of the Magic Mirror.
Jeff Bennett
Voice actor Jeff Bennett has the honor of being Kowalski in the Madagascar cartoon. He's very busy in Hollywood, also giving voice to Prowl in Transformers: Animated and Red Hood in Batman: The Brave and the Bold.John Di Maggio
Michael Buckner / Getty Images
Though the role is not new visually, penguin Rico finally has voice credit. All that gagging and regurgitating is done by none other than John Di Maggio, who plays Bender in Futurama.
