Brad Garrett has thus far enjoyed a storied tenure with Pixar, though his latest collaboration on Elio has given him a career-first for the studio. Having started in the world of stand-up comedy, Garrett quickly became a household name with his turn in the iconic sitcom Everybody Loves Raymond, going on to find further success with the likes of Gleason and ‘Til Death. However, he’s also very well known for providing his iconic deep voice to a wide range of animated productions, including four previous Pixar movies and numerous Disney тιтles.

Garrett stars in Elio as Lord Grigon, a warlord rejected from becoming part of the Communiverse who is planning a hostile takeover of the intergalactic committee out of spite. All the while, Grigon’s son, the worm-like alien Glordon, develops a friendship with the тιтular human protagonist, who also attempts to use Glordon as a bargaining chip in order to facilitate a peaceful settlement between Grigon and the Communiverse, leading to a tense adventure and multiple confrontations. Alongside Garrett, the ensemble Elio cast includes Yonas Kibreab, Zoe Saldaña, Remy Edgerly, Jameela Jamil and Shirley Henderson.

In honor of the movie’s release, ScreenRant interviewed Brad Garrett to discuss Elio. The Emmy winner reflected on some of his notable past roles with both Pixar and Disney, how the film marks a career-first in his decades-long tenure with the studio, and how his first viewing of the new film gave him a flashback to the first time he saw Finding Nemo in theaters.

Elio Marks Garrett’s First Villain Role For Pixar

He Also Praises The Studio For Their Collaborative Process In Creating Characters

While having a diverse history with Pixar, starring in everything from A Bug’s Life to Ratatouille, Garrett had yet to play a villain for them, or in the animation genre, prior to Elio. Humorously feeling he’s “been one in my family” for some time, he found it “so much fun” to get the opportunity to play a proper antagonist for the first time, having played intimidating characters in his voiceover past, such as Luca in the Garfield movies and Uto in Tarzan II.

Though his signature deep voice is already well-suited to a villainous character like Elio‘s Lord Grigon, Garrett praised getting to work closely with the movie’s creative team, describing Pixar as being “so collaborative” and that “you’re really creating the character together“. Even more helpful was when the production team “brought the sketches and the models” for the character, which gave him the direction to give Grigon something of an underbite in his voice, having pulled from a heartwarming family member for inspiration.

He was like my first dog, who had a great underbite, and he would bark like “[Imitates underbite bark]”. It was half bulldog, half harbor seal. [Chuckles]

Garrett Has Lots Of Love For His Prior Voiceover Roles

One, In Particular, He’s Surprised When People Discuss It With Him

With over 80 voice acting roles across movies, TV shows and video games, there are understandably a few characters in Garrett’s filmography that continue to stick with fans years later. One such character is that of Dim from A Bug’s Life, which he similarly has a fond memory of, even though he “had just a couple lines in it“, as it was his first collaboration with Pixar. It also stands out in his mind thanks to his children’s reaction to the film, turning to him during a “quiet point” of a screening and asking him “Why is your character so small?“, which he says his family “still laugh about” 26 years later.

After also sharing his continued love for the kind-hearted blowfish Bloat in the Finding Nemo franchise and Gusteau in Ratatouille, Garrett was taken by surprise when the conversation turned to the mid-’90s animated series 2 Stupid Dogs, in which he starred as Big Dog alongside fellow stand-up comedian Mark Schiff as Little Dog. Being surprised as “not many people bring that up“, he warmly recalled his experience working on the Hanna-Barbera-produced series, praising creator Donovan Cook as he “went on to be a great director and writer” while also remembering he and the creative team “loved” creating the show.

Garrett Was Blown Away With His First Viewing Of Elio

He Also Adores The Movie’s Central Character Arcs