Marshall the Dalmatian pup is one of the original members of the PAW Patrol — but why has his voice actor been recast so many times? Over the show's eight seasons, Paw Patrol has seen recasting for all of its main characters. Four actors have lent their voices to Marshall since 2013. Here is a breakdown of Marshall's voice actors and why they might have been recast.
PAW Patrol is an animated series about a young boy named Ryder and his crew of search and rescue pups, known as the PAW Patrol. Ryder and the PAW Patrol go all over their community of Adventure Bay, using their specialized skills and rescue vehicles to help out anyone in need. The PAW Patrol consists of six original members — Chase, Skye, Rocky, Zuma, Rubble, and Marshall. Marshall, a clumsy Dalmatian, serves as the team's fire and paramedic rescue pup.
When the Nickelodeon series began back in 2013, Marshall was voiced by Gage Munroe. Munroe, who has also voiced characters in other animated series such as Justin Time, played Marshall for the entirety of the first season. For season 2, Munroe was replaced by Drew Davis — who, coincidentally, had actually voiced the same character as Munroe in Justin Time a few years after Munroe left. Davis voiced Marshall for the longest period of any of Marshall's voice actors, spanning from season 2 to season 5. Marshall's longest-serving voice actor would then be replaced by his briefest, Lukas Engel, who would voice Marshall for less than a season. 11-year-old Kingsley Marshall is the current voice actor for Marshall.
There are a few reasons why Marshall's voice actors might have been recast so many times. The most likely possibility lies in the actors' ages; each voice actor ranges from 10 to 14 years old. With each actor leaving at around the same age at 14, it's likely the actors might just be aging out of the role. It's around this age that teenage boys' voices start to change, which can make it difficult to maintain the childlike voice the role requires. It's also possible that the young voice actors left for new projects, but aging out is more likely.
Marshall's previous voice actors have all moved on to new endeavors after their time on the show. Gage Munroe went on to voice Hank in Hotel Transylvania: The Series, along with various other TV series over the years. Drew Davis now voices Nicholas in Big Top Academy. Lukas Engel, the third Marshall voice actor, voices the starring role of Wesley in Hello Ninja. Kingsley Marshall, who is the current voice of Marshall, will be making his big-screen debut with the upcoming PAW Patrol: The Movie, which releases August 20, 2021.