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Critical Role's Laura Bailey reveals voice acting advice she gave her costar (and real-life husband) Travis Willingham

One has to wonder if Bailey gave her life partner and Mighty Nein costar advice in the Jester Lavorre voice, or kept it more professional

Image credit: Critical Role Productions

The OG cast of Critical Role are a lot of things, but perhaps chief among them is 'voice actors.' Across a multitude of video games and animated series, the cast that now make up Prime Video's The Mighty Nein have earned the experience to give sage advice to just about any voice actor out there... including each other. Although as Laura Bailey shared, it was still just a tiny bit weird when she ended up giving voice acting advice to a particularly close cast member - her IRL partner Travis Willingham.

The topic came up during a live edition of the Perri Nemiroff-hosted Collider Ladies Night, in which Bailey was joined by costars (and OG Rolers) Marisha Ray and Ashley Johnson. At one point in the discussion, the cast was asked to share a voice acting tip they learned over the course of their careers, one that stuck with them and changed their trajectory as actors.

"I don't know if this is not voice-acting specific," the The Legend of Vox Machina actor began, "But my theater director in college, Brad Baker, he was amazing. One of the best notes he ever gave me was, 'Don't move. Stop moving so much.' I just thought it was so natural, because I move a lot when I talk. So I was like, 'I'm just being me.' But he's like, 'It's so distracting from the message that you're trying to deliver. Just stop. Just stop doing all of the things and just say it because it's more powerful. [...] It kind of does translate to voice acting because it also helps with just stop."

Years later, Bailey found herself in the position of giving that same advice. 

"I actually... should I even tell the story?" Bailey asked. Then she did.

"I gave that note to Travis one time. I shouldn't give notes to my own husband, but no, it was because he was portraying a role that was really big and strong. And he was acting big and strong. I was like, 'Baby, you are big and strong. You are you are the biggest and the strongest. You don't you don't need to do that. Just just stand there and it's already there' And he was like, 'Oh, right, right, right.'"

"I wouldn't have given that note," she concluded, "If I hadn't been given that note."

Fair enough, Laura. 


With two animated series on Prime Video, Campaign 4 in full swing, and so much more Exandrian lore to come, Critical Role is showing no signs of slowing down. That's why the adventuring party at Popverse are here to bring you everything we can from those nerdy-ass voice actors & Bo., including:

...and much, much more. Roll initiative, player. Magic awaits.

 

Grant DeArmitt

Grant DeArmitt: Grant DeArmitt (he/him) likes horror, comics, and the unholy union of the two. In the past, and despite their better judgment, he has written for Nightmare on Film Street and Newsarama. He lives in Brooklyn with his partner, Kingsley, and corgi, Legs.

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