Jon Hamm’s on the Case
The acclaimed actor discusses the joys of working on Grimsburg and his love for animation.
Jon Hamm may be best known as a serious Emmy-winning actor who played troubled ad exec Don Draper in Mad Man and recently delivered top performances in the new seasons of Fargo and The Morning Show. However, the talented actor has also lent his famous voice to close to 20 animated shows and movies over the years, including The Simpsons, Robot Chicken, Bob’s Burgers, Archer, SpongeBob SquarePants, Family Guy, Metalocalypse, M.O.D.O.K., Big Mouth, Invincible, Big City Greens and Minions.
Hamm, who exec produces FOX’s new Sunday night show Grimsburg and also voices its main character, Marvin Flute, says he knew he wanted to be part of the new primetime show when he first read the script. “It wasn’t quite like anything I had seen before,” he tells Animation Magazine in a recent phone interview. "From a tonal standpoint, it was a bit different from everything else, and I thought it offered plenty of fertile ground to plow from a comedic standpoint. Mostly, I thought the show was something that I would watch myself and it seemed like a fun thing to do!”
The 52-year-old actor says he has always been a big fan of animation, mentioning a wide range of favorites, from Chuck Jones classics, Terrytoons’ Heckle and Jeckle, Tex Avery’s Droopy and Bill Plympton movies. “I also love all the great Miyazaki movies, and Spike and Mike’s animation festivals. Those were always my jam,” he mentions. “There’s just there’s so much amazing animated stuff out there in. All of it is super interesting and worthwhile. I mean if you’re a fan, all it all triggers an amazing response in your psyche.”
When asked about the look of his character on Grimsburg, which according to exec producer Chadd Gindin is loosely based on “what would Jon Hamm look like if he let himself go,” Hamm laughs. “I love the look of the show,” he says. “Obviously, everything, including the look of my character, is heightened for fun. Marvin definitely has a lot going on in his life, and the show offers a real comic take on the detective genre as well.”
Hamm, who is also voicing Sentinel Prime in the upcoming Transformers One movie, says he has already started working on the second season of the show, although there’s still work to be done on the first one. “With animation, there are always quite a bit of pickups and edits. It’s not a quick process, and you’re constantly tweaking jokes and, hopefully, you’re making things funnier and sillier. I just love doing that stuff. I hope audiences will be also enjoy visiting this world on Sunday nights and find it entertaining and worthwhile, because just like Krapopolis, it has a different vibe from the other adult animated shows on the lineup.” ◆