Sean Lee gives voice to a character on DC League of Super-Pets
In “DC League of Super-Pets,” Krypto the Super-Dog (voiced by Dwayne Johnson) and Superman (John Krasinski) are inseparable best friends, sharing the same superpowers and fighting crime in Metropolis, side by side.
When Superman and the rest of the Justice League are kidnapped, Krypto must convince a rag-tag shelter pack...
Actor, voice-over artist and celebrity Sean Lee aka SeanLJE is a part of the voiceover cast of the Warner Bros animated movie “DC League of Super-Pets”.
In “DC League of Super-Pets,” Krypto the Super-Dog (voiced by Dwayne Johnson) and Superman (John Krasinski) are inseparable best friends, sharing the same superpowers and fighting crime in Metropolis, side by side.
When Superman and the rest of the Justice League are kidnapped, Krypto must convince a rag-tag shelter pack – Ace the hound (Kevin Hart), PB the potbellied pig (Vanessa Bayer), Merton the turtle (Natasha Lyonne) and Chip the squirrel (Diego Luna) – to master their newfound powers and help him rescue the superheroes.
Lee (above) voices Waffles, a Boston Terrier living in Metropolis. This is the first time that Warner Bros has selected a Malaysian cast member for such a localised part.
Lee is best known for his roles in the drama series “The Hotel”, “Romantika 4 Hari 3 Malam” and “Jujurlah Nikahi Aku”.
In an interview with Malaysiakini, Lee recalled the moment he got the offer.
“On a bright sunny day (in May), I was walking down the road in Kuala Lumpur. Out of nowhere, I got an email from Warner Bros. They said ‘we are working on a secret project. Would you like to be on it?’,” said Lee with a tinge of humour.
“Like I tell anyone who gets an offer from Warner Bros, you just say yes. So we started discussing my involvement and how we were going to work together. That’s how it began. We worked on the script and I went into the recording booth and started working.”
Lee’s childhood dream was to voice a character in an animated film. He created a backstory for his character to help him with the voice-over process.
A Subang boy himself, the host-turned-actor envisioned Waffles to be a brutally honest dog from Subang Jaya, Malaysia, whose owner moved to Metropolis as an expatriate.
“I am very grateful that Warner Bros allowed me to create my backstory. We have pit-pointed a character to give a local flair. There were already lines. So I have to play along those lines, ‘Malaysianise’ it.
“Voice acting is similar to visual acting. So I had to give myself some sort of back story. It gives weight to the character and it makes sense,” Lee said.
“I thought. why not? I just embody some of my life experiences into Waffles, for relatability purposes. I spend most of my life growing up in Subang. So I thought why not incorporate slang and accents and my own experiences growing up in Subang and embody it into Waffles,” he elaborated.
The actual recording process was done in SDI Media, which does a lot of work on international film projects.
‘My first time in a very professional setting’
“It was my first time in a very professional setting for voice-over work. The recording process took only about one hour and a half. It is two hours if you count the chit-chat for briefings,” he added.
Lee has done voice-over work before, but for advertisements. That is why he jumped at a chance to voice Waffles.
He said that despite being isolated in a booth, with a director is guiding him. “Voice acting is dependent on the director’s guidance and making sure your intonations are right and matches other characters’ dialogues.”
Although his work for Waffles is specifically for Malaysian cinemas, Lee feels by giving Waffles a special local touch, it will make the film more relatable to Malaysian audiences.
“We grew up with Hollywood films, especially those from DC. We all know Superman. This is as close as we can get to localising it. It has a local humourous touch. I would be proud as a Malaysian to see a character speaking with a local accent in a major Hollywood film,” explained Lee.
Lee said he once had a pet dog (a Spitz) called Toby, which did not like to wear a collar.
“My dog was in my grandma's place for a while, when my family and I were overseas. My grandma would let him run around the neighbourhood. One day he did not come back and my grandma was worried.
“One of the neighbours told her that they saw the dog run into a dog pound van. He ran up by himself. I guess those guys took him to the pound. My grandma rang up my dad and when we came back, we had to collect the dog from the pound,” lee laughed when recalling the incident.
He doesn’t have a pet now but wishes he had one. “Pets can really brighten up your day.”
As for his plans, Lee wants to work in international productions soon and hopes to expand his market.
“Internationally, I would like to work in different countries. I have friends in Korea, Indonesia and the Philippines. I might think of something to work with them. Besides acting, hosting and creating content, I hope to venture out and do a bit of directing and producing.”
He directed and co-produced a short film two years ago and is now setting his sight to come out with a telemovie or a feature film.
Asked if Waffles is a good boy, Lee replied, “In my opinion, he is a good boy. He might be naughty but not bad. He is a very cheeky and fun character, and he looks cute.”
“DC League of Super-Pets” will premiere in cinemas on July 28.
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