Alan Tudyk

In Moana 2 (2024), Alan Tudyk's Heihei says nothing and is still the funniest thing aboard. We laughed at his wordless comedy, while the songs made scarcely any impression. It is a small vocal part that works in a film we cannot recommend, and a useful introduction to Tudyk's particular value. His timing makes supporting characters worth attending to even when there is little else to hold us. He deserves better material than he sometimes gets.

His breakthrough as Wash in Firefly (2002–2003), followed by Serenity (2005), established his association with science fiction. His recurring work with writer-director Joss Whedon belongs to that same strand. K-2SO in Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016) used both voice and motion capture, an apt combination for an actor whose delivery can give a droid a distinct personality. Leading Resident Alien (2021–2025) as Harry Vanderspeigle also took him beyond the supporting jobs for which he is often valued.

The animation work became a substantial strand with King Candy in Wreck-It Ralph (2012), followed by roles in nearly every subsequent Disney Animation feature. That continuing collaboration suits his gift for distinctive delivery, but it also supplies the clearest example of what happens when the writing lets him down. In Wish (2023), his Valentino is a goat given speech by a falling star and then left making remarks about his own rear. The script gives Tudyk little chance to distinguish Valentino from any other comic animal supplied with a bodily-function joke.

An actor so often used in support has to be judged separately from the films surrounding him. We would not recommend Moana 2 for an evening, but we would defend the pleasure Tudyk provides in it; there is less to defend in Wish. The larger part in Resident Alien is an encouraging direction for someone whose reputation rests so often on making a smaller one count.