Opening up about how the decision left him fuming, actor Alan Tudyk claims he was axed from the publicity campaign for the 2004 film I, Robot.
Alan Tudyk claims he was axed from the publicity campaign for the 2004 film I, Robot.
The 53-year-old played the robot Sonny in the film, providing both the motion capture and the voice, and he says the mock to drop him from the promotional run that went with the movie’s release after test screenings showed his performance scored higher with audiences than that of the movie’s leading star Will Smith.
Speaking on the podcast Toon’d In with Jim Cummings, he said: “A lot of people did not know I did Sonny the Robot in I, Robot, and there is a reason. T
“They were doing test audiences for the movie, and they score the characters in this kind of test screening.
“I got word back: ‘Alan, you are testing higher than Will Smith.’
“And then I was gone. I was done. There was no publicity, and my name was not mentioned.”
He added: “I was so shocked. I was like, ‘Wait, nobody is going to know I’m in it!’ I put a lot into (that performance.)
“I had to move like a robot. At the time, I was very upset.”
Science-fiction thriller I, Robot, directed by Alex Proyas, is set in Chicago in 2035 and follows Will’s character – a detective investigating the apparent suicide of the head of a robotics corporation.
The company’s androids are widely used for public service jobs, but the detective suspects one of them – Sonny, played by Alan – is responsible for murder.
The cast also featured Bridget Moynahan, 54, Bruce Greenwood, 68, James Cromwell, 84, and 62-year-old Chi McBride.
At the time of the film’s release, motion capture performances were still relatively uncommon in Hollywood outside of Ahmed Best’s portrayal of Jar Jar Binks in the Star Wars prequels and Andy Serkis’s performance as Gollum in The Lord of the Rings.
Alan later returned to the technology when he played the droid K-2SO in Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016), a role he reprised in the Disney+ series Andor.
Variety reported Will’s representatives have been contacted for comment on Alan’s podcast claim.
Alan Tudyk claims he was axed from publicity campaign for the 2004 film I, Robot
