Angry Birds Mystery Island cast member Ernie Hudson talks voicing Marlon and his admiration for animation

Things are a little different in Part 3 of Angry Birds Mystery Island! The three-part series is set to release its last batch of episodes on Dec. 3 on Amazon Kids+ and Prime Video. Parts 1 and 2 are available to watch right now so now is the time to catch up if you haven't already!

The series is based on the popular mobile game franchise, Angry Birds. In Angry Birds Mystery Island, we are introduced to three new Hatchling characters—Mia, Rosie, and Buddy—and a foreign-exchange piglet named “Hamylton” who are mistakenly catapulted onto an uncharted island. The group realizes that they need to unlock the mysteries of the island together.

The cast includes Nasim Pedrad as Rosie, Kate Micucci as Mia, Harvey Guillen as Buddy, and Dominic Monaghan as Hamylton. The series is a co-partnership between Rovio Entertainment and Amazon MGM Studios, with Chris Prynoski, Shannon Prynoski, Antonio Canobbio, and Ben Kalina of Titmouse, Inc. also executive producing. Other characters include Dee Bradley Baker as Jok-al / Wormzinger / Aardvark, Roger Craig Smith as Tree Frog, Kari Wahlgren as Laura Palmtree, Avril Lavigne as Tuba, and Ernie Hudson as Marlon.

We all know the voice of Ernie Hudson, who we have lauded for his on-screen roles as Dr. Winston Zeddemore in the Ghostbusters franchise and most recently, in the reboot of Quantum Leap. He can also be heard as a voice actor in series such as Transformers Prime, Infinity Train, and more. In Angry Birds Mystery Island, Hudson voices Marlon, the older and very angry bird with a heart full of untapped depth. Hudson brings his signature energy and emotion to this animated comedy-adventure series.

The Parent Watch had the opportunity to speak to Hudson and get a deep dive into his approach to voicing Marlon and his plans to continue to voice animated characters. We also talk about making the decision to jump into the exciting world of Angry Birds Mystery Island, where comedy, adventure, and unexpected friendships take flight. Read on!

The Parent Watch: How did Angry Birds Mystery Island fall into your lap?

Ernie Hudson: Well, I got a call. My agents sent me the script, and I wasn't sure. I knew what Angry Birds was in terms of the game. I knew they had been a couple of movies or at least a movie, but it was reading the script and this wonderful character, Marlon, that I thought was just a lot of fun. They asked me if I wanted to do it. That's very important for me at this stage in my life. I'm not chasing work, but for people who want to work with me, who respect me enough to say we're doing this and we like that. I love the theme of the show and the overall lessons. I also love Marlon, and I just wanted to be a part of it.

Marlon is such an interesting character. One of the older, very, very angry birds who has lived in the jungle. You've been acting for decades upon decades, when it comes to voicing a character, specifically Marlon, how did you jump into that?

EH: You read the script and get a sense of the character—you try to find those aspects of the character that make sense. Marlon reminded me a lot of people I started doing theater with years ago: those big personalities who don’t hold back their emotions. It’s not just the anger; all of the emotions are at play. Then, when you meet the creative team and they have their own vision, you try to blend those elements together. I knew it would be a fun journey. I can’t quite remember where I was going with that thought, but hopefully, I answered the question. It was just fun to have the chance to play and bring the character to life. With animation, there are so many things out of your control, and then the team adds their own layer to it, which is outside of your hands. It was fun. It was fun to explore and come up with different sounds. There are sounds in animation that are different from what you can do in live-action, or things you don’t usually get the chance to try. I’d love to see Marlon in live-action one day.

I grew up playing the game, so I was excited to see that there was a show. What did you learn from voicing this character and being a part of the story?

EH: I love the fact that, for me, it's a throwback to how shows in the past would try to teach a lesson—that we all share this universal sense of right and wrong. There's always a moral reason behind the story, and we watch to take something meaningful from it. I've always sought out projects with that kind of depth. With a character like Marlon, that's what I love about him—he grows. Even though he's upset and struggling, he learns and is willing to change his perspective. By the end, he agrees to let everyone go, even though he feels he has the power to stop them. He learns that he can make new friends. To me, all of that is really important—it’s about seeing things from a different perspective. The pig, now his friend, is still a pig, but Marlon accepts him. It’s not always easy, but that’s what’s been important for me in my career overall: finding projects that offer lessons we can learn from, while also being able to cross generations. A parent can watch Angry Birds Mystery Island with their child or grandchild and have a discussion where they both learn something from it. It's really important.

I'm assuming you do a solo record?

EH: I love working with an ensemble. When we did Transformers Prime, everyone was in the room together for each session, and you could really play off each other. That’s a lot of fun, but it doesn’t happen very often. With Angry Birds Mystery Island, you're doing your part solo, and you hear the sounds of the others, but it's always nicer when you can work together in the same space. These days, people often record from home or other locations, and while the producers and directors have a good sense of the overall vision, they might be aiming for something different than I expect. There were sounds I thought were perfect, but they had a different direction in mind that I didn’t always understand. If I totally disagree with something, I can’t do it. If I don’t understand, I’ll think, 'Let me go down that road and see what we come up with.' It’s a collaboration in that way. And it was fun because we had a great creative team. They really cared about what they were doing. You could feel their passion—it wasn’t just about making a show to make money.

I can definitely see that being just really interesting, especially with voice actors. You get the script you just have to go along with it and making it your own can feel odd sometimes, depending on how collaborative the writing is and all of that. Was there a particular scene or moment from recording that you remember that stood out to you?

EH: I think it was really about his anger—how far it went. He exploded, but I knew he had to come back and make peace with it. They thought he was but I love the little nuances, like the scene with my crab friends. Nothing else comes to mind right now. I just remember how far down this road we took it—how big we were going to make it. Then, we’d swing back the other way. All of that is a collaboration, and it all has to make sense. But nothing really stands out as being that difficult, because when you go into those sessions, you just have to be open-minded. I don’t do a lot of voiceover animation work, but I’d love to do more. Still, I always know that I’m trying to find the character too. I don’t want to just do what I think feels right. I want the guidance. As long as I know you really care about what you're doing and you're genuinely trying to make it work, then I’m all in. We're all trying to make this better. So that was a fun collaboration.

There are three main hatchling characters: Mia, Rosie, and Buddy. When you were looking at the script and looking at the other characters, was there a character that you liked personally?

EH: It's interesting because the birds and the pigs don’t get along. At first, I embrace Hamylton because he’s a lover of theater, and he's the bird that resonates with me. But then I realize he’s not a bird at all—he’s a pig, and we’re supposed to hate him. In the end, though, I have to make peace with that. There’s a lesson in that, not just for Marlon, but for all of us: letting go and finding understanding. I believe in spirit, and I think we're all guided by it. It’s not necessarily a religious thing—it’s more about humanity, that sense of humanness that’s always at play. I’m not sure how I got off track from your original question, though.

This is a franchise and so many people know. You're introducing these new characters. Marlon is a villainous character, but you humanize him as he is a crucial part of the story, and it's revealed that he is the only Angry Bird on the island. Did you have any close friends or family members that commented on you voicing Marlon?

EH: I haven't seen many people who’ve watched the show yet, since it’s just come out now, I think. So it’ll be interesting to see. I’ll watch it with my grandkids or my great-grandkids and see what they think. A lot of times, when you do a show—especially animation—you’re voicing a character who’s very specifically defined, like the bad guy or whatever. They’ll build the character around that. Marlon had to go to all those places within himself. That’s one of the things I love about it because I know there’s going to be a resolution; he has to resolve it. That doesn’t happen very often. You usually get a good guy who’s clearly the hero, and a bad guy who’s clearly the villain, and maybe he gets punished, but there’s not always a real resolution. With Marlon, it’s different, and hopefully, that comes through. It’ll be interesting to see what my grandkids think about it.

It transcends generations. There are shows that are meant to do that. You talked about doing voiceover work and wanting to do more. What makes voiceover such a great medium for storytelling?

EH: I love it because animation takes us to a different space in our imagination and creativity, especially with young people. It’s also about digging within yourself to find those different sounds. We all have a signature sound—this is what Ernie Hudson sounds like—but you can push it higher or explore different ranges. It’s like a reserve I didn’t know I had. When I did Agent Fowler on Transformers Prime, I was able to tap into stuff I wouldn’t normally access in everyday life. I love that we can dig deep and create these unique sounds. Then the animators come in and hopefully fill it all in, making it all make sense. Without the visuals you get in live-action, sometimes sound isn't your best friend. Sometimes you don’t need sound at all, but with animation, it’s a different kind of reserve. It taps into a different part of your creativity, and it’s so much fun to do, but’s a closed world.

Unless people are aware of it, animation can be a little difficult to get into—especially if you're not willing to audition or actively seek out opportunities. But it definitely offers something unique. I would say it’s like a different kind of exercise, a different muscle to stretch. It’s like if you’re only doing weight training—you’re not working those other muscles. Animation is like trying Pilates for the first time: you discover muscles you didn’t even know were there. That’s what makes animation so fun.

Angry Birds Mystery Island Part 3 premieres on Amazon Kids+ and Prime Video on Dec. 3.